Honeycomb (cereal)

Honeycomb is a breakfast cereal first released in 1965,[1] owned by Post Holdings. It consists of honey-flavored corn cereal bits in a honeycomb shape.

Versions

At the end of 2006, Post changed the formula for Honeycomb to make it healthier. This change, although tested by Post beforehand to positive reviews, received mainly negative reviews from consumers.[2]

Following this public response, in March 2007, Kraft Foods (then-owner of Post Cereals[3]) introduced a new "Improved Taste" version of the cereal that the company claimed would improve "the cereal's taste, texture and appearance while incorporating key nutritional benefits to the product."

Three flavor variations have been marketed: Strawberry Blasted Honeycomb, Chocolate Honeycomb, and Cinna-Graham Honeycomb.

Advertising and Marketing

Originally, an animated cowboy named The Honeycomb Kid was the cereal's mascot. The cereal's jingle was borrowed from the song "Honeycomb", a 1957 hit for Jimmie Rodgers.

Honeycomb Hideout

During the 1970s and 1980s, television commercials featured visitors to a children's clubhouse called the Honeycomb Hideout in which the visitor arrives, initially hostile, and exclaims a need for a "big" cereal. The kids introduce the visitor to the cereal, winning over the visitor, and then they examine the size of the cereal bits with a tape measure and sing the jingle:

During the 1980s, the cereal offered the Honeycomb Hideout Club for children, distributing badges, membership cards and clubhouse toy incentives on specially marked box tops.[5]

The jingle was spoofed on the Futurama episode entitled "The Sting" in 2003.

"Honeycomb's big...yeah yeah yeah!
It's not small...no no no!
Honeycomb's got...a big big bite (later a "big honey taste")!
Big big taste (later "crunch") in a big big bite!"

Honeycomb Kid

Honeycomb Kid sought what he called "The Honeycomb Secret". Honeycomb Kid had learned from his prior adventures that the secret consisted of three separate parts: the first was the crunch; the second was the shape; however, the third and most important answer had always eluded him. In the last installment of his first commercial appearances, Honeycomb Kid discovers that the third component of the Honeycomb secret is the taste.

Another set of Honeycomb Kid commercials were made in the 1980s in which a child athlete finished practicing, then came up to a table with Honeycomb cereal, exclaimed it was his or her favorite cereal, to where the older people at the table would somewhat mock the "little kid" or "little guy" for wanting "big Honeycomb", to which the kid would respond, "Little kid (guy)?! Watch this!" The kid would then show off his or her skills to them, thoroughly impressing them (saying "Big stuff!" and "Honeycomb kid!" as they watched) and being accepted by them ("I didn't know you were a Honeycomb kid!"). The commercial ends with the kid happily eating a bowl of Honeycombs.

Crazy Craving

In 1995, a mascot, Crazy Craving was introduced as a wild-haired, wide-eyed character who craves Honeycomb cereal and whom children in the commercials transform into. Its catch-phrase was "Me Want Honeycomb!"

Bernard, the Bee Boy

Another commercial introduces Bernard, a boy raised by bees. In the advertisement, he is found by human people and they attempt to socialize with him. Although he had clearly been a feral child, he apparently cannot argue the fact that he is a 'bee' not a 'boy,' and he enjoys Honeycomb. In a later commercial, a man gives a safari-like tour for the bee boy, luring him with Honeycomb. In a commercial released in 2010, a second bee boy was introduced played by Canadian actor Joel Cox.[6]

producttype	Breakfast cereal
currentowner	Post Holdings
producedby	Post Consumer Brands
country	U.S.
introduced	1965
website	post.com/honeycomb

Versions

Ingredients

Advertising and Marketing

Honeycomb Hideout

Honeycomb Kid

Crazy Craving

Bernard, the Bee Boy

Mini scale models and license plates

External links

References