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Winter Holiday Season 2004 Index
Character Profile: Marky Maypo
Homestat Farm Wheatena
Cereal Recipes
Boxtops for Education
Marky's Maypo vs. Quaker's Oats
Cereal Review - Barbara's Bakery "Peanut Butter Puffins Cereal"
Cereal Review - Kellogg's "The Incredibles Multi-Grain Cereal"
Cereal Review - General Mills "Wheaties Energy Crunch"
What's New in Cereal?
- Our Sugar Cereals Have Less Sugar
- Wheaties "Boston Red Sox" Box
- General Mills "Shrek 2" Promotion
- SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Cereal
- Free Children's Books in Cheerios
- Post "The Polar Express" Cereal
- Kellogg's "The Incredibles" Promotion
- Is Post For Sale?
Send Us Your News
Character Profile: Marky Maypo
by Topher |
 | Marky, created in 1956 by John Hubley, is a four-year-old brat decked out in a cowboy outfit who can't get enough maple-flavored oatmeal. "I want my Maypo!"
Originally owned by Maltex Co (a Hueblein subsidiary), the brand was sold to AHP in the 1960's, then acquired by International Home Foods, and subsequently sold to ConAgra in August of 2000. In October 2001 it was bought by Homestat Farm and they have reintroduced the hot cereal. (See "Maypo vs Quaker Oats" below).
More information can be found at the Homestat Farm website. | Marky 1950's
Maltex Maypo |
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Homestat Farm Wheatena
by Topher |
 | In the late 1870's, on Mulberry Street in Lower New York City, a small bakery owner roasted whole wheat, ground it and sold it in packages branded "Wheatena". Homestat Farm has also brought Wheatena back to your local market. Wheatena is a very high fiber toasted wheat product popular as a hot cereal and ingredient you can add to breads, muffins, and other baked goods. As you might imagine, it's most popular in the Autumn and Winter months. Wheatena appeals most to more mature adults who are looking for the benefits of high fiber diet (reducing the risks of colon cancer and aiding regularity). |
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Cereal Recipes
by TopherWe all know cereal isn't just for breakfast. Some of our favorite dessert and snack recipes are cereal-based. Check out our cereal recipes page for three top holiday treats: Kellogg's Corn Flakes Holiday Wreaths, Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats, and Chex Mix (also known as Crispix Mix or "Chicken Feed").
Of course the big cereal manufacturers work to develop recipes utilizing their stable of cereals in an effort to sell more product. Check out these cereal recipes from
Post,
Kellogg's, and
Quaker Oats.
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Boxtops for Education
by Topher |
 | General Mills has been offering schools an opportunity to redeem "Boxtops for Education" logos clipped from cereal boxtops and other General Mills products since 1996. Each logo is worth ten cents. To date, General Mills has contributed over $100 Million to 82,000 elementary and middle schools (kindergarten through 8th grade) throughout the United States. | We have noticed that many folks without school-aged children either don't collect the logos or don't know where to send them. With education budgets being slashed nationwide, YOU really can make a big difference by saving these logos and mailing them to your neighborhood school, or send them to:
Weddington Middle School PTSA, 5903 Deal Road, Matthews, NC 28104. |
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Marky's Maypo vs. Quaker's Oats
by Topher
Quaker Oats was officially formed in 1901, introduced Quick Oats in 1921, and introduced their "instant oatmeal" in 1966. Maypo (Maple-flavored Oatmeal) has been around since 1953. Over the past 50 years, the brand was owned by several companies. In October 2001 it was bought by Homestat Farm and they have reintroduced the hot cereal.
How does Marky's Maypo compare to Quaker's Oatmeal? |
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| Nutrition: | Both "Maple and Brown Sugar" varieties are very similar. Variations are primarily due to the actual vitamins added. Both claim that "Oatmeal reduces cholesterol and the risk of heart disease". |
| Preparation: | Maypo: 1 Cup of Water to 1/2 Cup of Oatmeal
Quaker: 2/3 Cup of Water to 1/2 Cup of Oatmeal
Cook both 1 to 2 minutes in Microwave on High. |
| Aroma: | Maypo: stronger oats with hints of maple
Quaker: mild oat, no discernible maple notes |
| Appearance: | Maypo: Thicker
Quaker: Thinner
Note: You can add or subtract quantity of water for desired creaminess. |
| Texture: | Maypo: Thicker
Quaker: Creamier
Note: You can add or subtract quantity of water for desired creaminess. |
| Taste: | Frankly, neither really satisfied this cold cereal lover. Looks like you folks with a preference for hot cereals will need to perform your own taste test. |
| Bowl: | Militant oatmeal remnants left to dry in the bottom of both bowls glued themselves on tight. |
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Cereal Review
by Topher, Editor
Barbara's Bakery "Peanut Butter Puffins"
 | Barbara's Bakery makes all-natural cereals that are made from organic grains. They use recycled materials in their box construction, and donate time and money to non-profit groups. They have a full stable of cereals. We reviewed four of their cereals in our Winter Holiday Season 2003 Issue. We went back to the store and picked up their Peanut Butter Puffins cereal. These are surprisingly large, natural peanut butter infused, pillows of puffed corn which float in your milk. Puffins do not easily become soggy. They taste a lot like Quaker Oat's Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch except these won't rip up the roof of your mouth. It gives your milk a slight peanut butter flavor. I rate Peanut Butter Puffins at 7 Boxtops (Very Good! Recommend Purchase). |
Kellogg's "The Incredibles Multi-Grain Cereal"
 | Mr. Incredible, the superman-like father hero, is featured on the box of this cereal promotion for the late 2004 Disney-Pixar movie release "The Incredibles". The lightly-sweetened star-shaped puffed-corn cereal has a strong incrediberry (strawberry) flavor. It is reminiscent of Kellogg's Dr. Seuss' THE CAT IN THE HAT offering produced last Holiday season. The floating stars are pretty cool looking and crunch nicely to the end. This box contains no prizes inside, but does have a mail-in offer on the side box panel for an Incredibles (1:64 scale) Race Car. I rate The Incredibles Cereal at 6½ Boxtops (Almost Very Good! Recommend Purchase Anyway.) |
General Mills "Wheaties Energy Crunch"
 | Wheaties Energy Crunch is made up of honey-toasted whole grain wheat flakes, crunchy protein clusters (with rice and oats), and almonds. This is an interesting variation of Wheaties. The crunchy clusters are fun to munch. This lightly sweet cereal may take a couple bites to adjust to if you are a Wheaties fan. It is tasty however. I rate Wheaties Energy Crunch at 8 Boxtops (Very Good! Recommend Purchase). |
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What's New In Cereal?
by Topher
Our Sugar Cereals Have Less Sugar
Kellogg's fired the first shot by issuing new "1/3 less Sugar" versions of two of their best selling cereals: Frosted Flakes and Froot Loops. Now General Mills has shot back by issuing new "75% Less Sugar!" versions of Trix, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Cocoa Puffs. Please pass the sugar bowl. |
 | Wheaties "Boston Red Sox" Box
General Mills released a special-edition Wheaties box featuring David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox in celebration of their 2004 World Series victory. The 1999 Yankees were the last baseball team to be featured. In a related story, the 2004 St. Louis Cardinals "baseball slugger" action figure toys are being recalled. Apparently they're a choking hazard! [Joke].
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 | General Mills "Shrek 2" Promotion
General Mills has a major promotional tie-in with the release of the Shrek 2 DVD and Video. Shrek, the cereal (shown at left), is still in stores; while six other cereals feature Shrek, sporting a white tee-shirt, on the box. Specially marked boxes of Lucky Charms, Honey Nut Cheerios, Reese’s Puffs, Kix, Trix, and Cocoa Puffs include a Shrek iron-on image on the back of the box. Simply cut out the image from the back of your cereal box and iron it directly on a t-shirt. Viola! Shrekwear. There are four different designs: Shrek, Donkey, Fiona, and Puss in Boots.
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SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Cereal
Kellogg's, which also has a SpongeBob SquarePants Cereal on store shelves has released a SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Cereal promoting the Winter 2004 movie by the same name. In addition to the current marbits featuring SpongeBob, Patrick, pineapples, and jellyfish, the movie cereal also includes "New Plankton Marshmallow Pieces".
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Free Children's Books in Cheerios
Starting in November 2004 and continuing into early 2005 (while supplies of specially-marked boxes last), Cheerios is giving away more than five million children's books free inside Cheerios boxes. This year's crop of five different titles are part of the ongoing Cheerios "Spoonfuls of Stories" program, which helps get books into kids' hands. The titles are: "What Mommies Do Best/What Daddies Do Best" by Laura Numeroff, "Micawber" by John Lithgow, "Super-Completely and Totally the Messiest" by Judith Viorst, "Giggle, Giggle, Quack" by Doreen Cronin, and "The Relatives Came" by Cynthia Rylant. You will be able to see which book you are getting through a cut-out panel on the box.
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 | Post "The Polar Express" Cereal
Post has issued a "Limited Edition" cereal based upon the 2004 Holiday movie release "The Polar Express". It is essentially a chocolate version of Lucky Charms with lots of cocoa-flavored star-shaped cereal pieces combined with marshmallows shaped like bells, mountains, trains, reindeer and snowflakes. |
Kellogg's "The Incredibles" Promotion
Besides The Incredibles Cereal (reviewed above), Kellogg's is offering a number of different Incredibles toys. Free-Inside specially marketed boxes of Kellogg's cereals is an Incredibles Super-Launcher with 1 of 6 discs featuring Mr. Incredible, Mrs. Incredible, Violet, Dash, Jack-Jack, and Frezone. They have a couple of lottery-based prizes: 1-in-50 movie passes, and 1-in-2000 inflatable punching bags featuring Mr. Incredible on one side and Syndrome on the other. A complete set of discs can be ordered by mail, as can the punching bag, and a die cast race car. |
Is Post for Sale?
Kraft may be looking to sell its Post cereals subsidiary. Kraft has recently been selling brands in market categories it does not dominate. Post, which sells over $1.1 Billion in cereal annually, is the number three manufacturer behind Kellogg's and General Mills. Post, which makes Pebbles, Golden Crisp, Honeycomb, Alpha-bits, Grape-Nuts, Raisin Bran, and Shredded Wheat among others, could bring in excess of $3.0 Billion if sold. |
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If you notice anything new in your supermarket cereal isle, or wish to report a new cereal development, please email us. We'll give you credit for your information, or keep it confidential, at your request. Thank you. |
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The Boxtop is a non-commercial publication. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by any cereal or company. All of the names, characters, brands, and icons included here are trademarks of their respective parent companies and cannot be used for commercial purposes. Enjoy breakfast and support your favorite characters! |
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Opinions expressed are those of the writer, which like most things having to do with cereal may not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Editor, anyone else on the staff, or the world at large. A good sense of humor is appreciated. |
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All information contained herein was obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but we cannot guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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