Crispix, the crispy rice and corn cereal from Kellogg’s, has been a beloved breakfast staple for decades. However, in recent years, fans have had trouble finding boxes of the twin cereals on store shelves, leading many to wonder – did Kellogg’s discontinue Crispix?
The History of Crispix
Crispix first hit the market in the 1960s and was created to compete with other popular crispy cereals at the time like Corn Flakes. It was made up of crispy puffs, some flavored with rice while others were made with corn. This gave it a unique dual-texture and dual-flavor profile compared to other single-grain cereals. Crispix was also notable for its simple ingredient list – just rice, corn, sugar, salt, and malt flavoring.
Over the years, Crispix cultivated a loyal following of fans who loved its crunchy texture and crispy-yet-light mouthfeel. The brand marketed itself as a fun, kid-friendly cereal throughout the 1970s and 80s. Its mascots were two elves named Crispy and Pixie, representative of the two grains that made up each Crispix puff.
Though it never achieved the mainstream popularity of cereals like Frosted Flakes or Froot Loops, Crispix maintained strong enough sales to remain in steady production for over 50 years. It became a staple cereal offering in many households.
The Decline of Crispix
In the 2010s, however, Cereal fans started noticing Crispix becoming harder to find on store shelves. Reports of spotty inventory and distribution issues became more and more common. Some loyal eaters of the cereal resorted to stockpiling boxes of Crispix whenever they could find them.
There are a few factors that likely led to this decline in Crispix availability:
- Falling cereal sales – Overall cold cereal consumption has been declining over the past decade. Many consumers view cereals as an inconvenient, less healthy breakfast option compared to on-the-go items like protein bars.
- Rise of private label cereals – Store brands have been eating into major cereal makers’ market share. Private label crispy rice and corn cereals provide cheaper alternatives to Crispix.
- Lack of marketing – Kellogg’s did little in the way of advertising or promoting Crispix in recent years, failing to attract new younger consumers.
As a result of these factors, Crispix saw its sales steadily fall, leading to distribution problems and ultimately disappearance from many store shelves.
The Question: Did Kellogg’s Discontinue Crispix?
With availability continuing to drop year after year, many have concluded that Kellogg’s quietly discontinued Crispix at some point in the last decade without making a formal announcement. However, that does not appear to be the case.
Kellogg’s maintains that Crispix has not been discontinued. While it is not as widely available as it once was, they claim production is still ongoing and boxes can still be found in some stores.
Judging from fan reports online, Crispix sightings do still occasionally occur. Certain regional or specialty grocery stores seem to have better stocks than major national chains. The cereal can also be purchased directly from Kellogg’s website, though at a higher per-box cost.
However, even if it technically remains in production, the extreme lack of availability means Crispix has been effectively discontinued in the eyes of many fans. Unless Kellogg’s commits to wider distribution and more active marketing, sightings of Crispix on store shelves are likely to remain rare.
Why Would Kellogg’s Discontinue Crispix?
If Crispix has not been formally discontinued, that begs the question – why has Kellogg’s dramatically scaled back production and distribution to the point where finding the cereal is so difficult?
There are a few possible motives behind Kellogg’s handling of Crispix:
- Cutting underperforming brands – With the cereal market struggling, Kellogg’s could be looking to trim smaller, declining brands like Crispix from their lineup to focus on more profitable offerings.
- Reducing overhead – Continuing to manufacture and distribute a lagging brand like Crispix may cost Kellogg’s more than it earns back in sales.
- Avoiding brand discontinuation publicity – Formally announcing it has discontinued Crispix could risk backlash from its loyal consumer base.
By keeping Crispix around but limiting availability, Kellogg’s can achieve most of the cost savings of discontinuing it while avoiding negative public attention from angry Crispix devotees.
Will Crispix Ever Make a Comeback?
For diehard fans holding out hope of Crispix once again being common on store shelves, the prospects do not look good. However, Kellogg’s has revived struggling cereal brands before.
In the late 1990s, Kellogg’s had discontinued Rice Krispies Treats Cereal due to poor sales. But in the early 2010s, thanks to lobbying by fans, they decided to bring back the marshmallowy cereal to store shelves. A recipe tweak addressing complaints about the original cereal’s texture is credited with making the comeback successful.
While Rice Krispies Treats Cereal and Crispix are very different products, the former’s relaunch does show that with enough fan demand, Kellogg’s is willing to give a failed cereal a second chance.
For now though, those desperate for their Crispix fix will have to hope they get lucky during their grocery trips or be willing to pay premium online prices. Barring an unexpected revival, supplies will continue to be scarce.
Crispix Fans Air Their Grievances
On food forums and cereal fan sites, the scarce availability of Crispix has sparked extensive discussion and complaints from the cereal’s die-hard followers. A few notable grievances from Crispix lovers:
- “It’s a travesty that I can’t readily buy my favorite cereal anymore without going on some wild goose chase.”
- “I don’t understand why Kellogg’s won’t just tell us if they’ve discontinued it instead of this nonsense of pretending it’s still around.”
- “I used to be able to buy Crispix every grocery trip. Now I haven’t seen a box in over a year. What happened?”
- “I just don’t get why they’d ditch Crispix but keep making bland stuff like Corn Flakes that no one eats anymore.”
Many express frustration not just over the loss of the cereal, but the lack of communication from Kellogg’s about the status of Crispix. Fans feel left in the dark about whether they will ever be able to regularly purchase it again.
Alternatives for Crispix Lovers
Unless Crispix manages to make an unexpected comeback, fans will continue to be disappointed by its lack of availability. Here are some alternatives to consider instead:
| Cereal | Description |
|---|---|
| Malt-O-Meal Crispy Rice and Corn Puffs | Budget cereal with a similar crispy rice and corn mixture |
| Barbara’s Puffins | Rice and corn cereal with a crunchier texture |
| Nature’s Path Crispy Rice | Organic crispy rice cereal |
| EnviroKidz Crispy Rice | Organic crispy rice cereal made with puffed rice and corn |
While none are exact replacements, these crispy rice and corn cereals may help satisfy the cravings of Crispix devotees. There are also many recipes online for homemade crispy rice cereal that mimic the taste and texture of Crispix.
The Legacy of Crispix
Though its future looks uncertain, Crispix carved out an important place in cereal history thanks to its unique split-grain concept, crunchy texture, and decades of nostalgia. Many adults have fond childhood memories of enjoying Crispix that they now cannot recreate for their own kids due to its scarcity.
The brand served as a bridge between single-grain cereals like Rice Krispies and Corn Flakes and mixed-grain cereals like muesli and granola that came later. Its legacy lives on in the many superior off-brand crispy rice and corn cereals it inspired.
Perhaps if enough passionate fans make their demands heard, Kellogg’s will breathe new life into Crispix and reintroduce it with new packaging and marketing. But only time will tell if this crispy cereal becomes widely accessible once again.
Conclusion
While Kellogg’s insists it still produces Crispix cereal, the brand is clearly a shadow of its former self based on its near total absence from store shelves for several years now. Cost-cutting and lack of marketing investment seem the likely factors behind why Crispix has been reduced to limited availability despite an ardent fanbase pleading for its return.
Though small supplies still sporadically crop up, many feel Kellogg’s has effectively discontinued Crispix due to how difficult finding it has become. Besides the occasional nostalgic box bought online at a premium, crispy cereal fans have had to find new ways to get their rice and corn crunch fix. Time will tell whether Crispix ever regains widespread distribution, but for now the crunchy cereal remains a beloved product fans can rarely enjoy.