Honey Maid Shrunk My Graham Crackers

I purchased a large box from Costco and they taste so bad I'm going to
toss them in the garbage they are terrible and I use to love them. I
don't mind paying more as long as the quality is good, but when they
taste that bad I will never buy another Nabisco Gram Cracker yuk.

I just bought a box and noticed a big difference. I couldn't believe
how sugary they were. They aren't as grainy as they used to be too.
The recipe has been changed and soy has been added. Almost all
crackers and cookies have soy now, which changes the taste. Even
Cheez-Its have soy. Nothing has the same recipe, as far as I can tell.
I'm going to try to find a health food store that carries some without
soy and are more old fashioned or make them myself.

The crackers are rectangular instead of square and therefore, smaller.
My box says Kraft Foods Global, Inc., Northfield, Il. It doesn't say
"made in" or "distributed by" Can't find where they are made on the
box. They taste OK. Just bought them yesterday for so'mores so the
box needs to be used by Oct. 2, 2011. I'll keep checking when I go to
the store.

Sincerely,

Susan WIlson

Please go back to the old recipe. This new recipe is horrible, yuk!!
I will never buy these again. I'll have to go back to Keebler for now
I guess.

Not only did they shrink them, the taste is disgusting. I stopped
buying them, they taste like sugary cardboard. I tried Sunshine
graham crackers, and they are much like the old Nabisco. Now I
purchase that brand. Hopefully Sunshine won't change their recipe or
size. I am so disappointed in Nabisco.

i just noticed the same problems. smaller size, higher price, and the
thing that just dropped my jaw, they're now made in mexico! we can't
even be profitable making them in the usa anymore? outrageous! they've
taken what used to be a fine american product and just ruined it. i
will certainly be looking for a replacement product.

I haven't noticed a size change since I've only been eating them
frequently since 2010 but I bought some from Target that were awful!!!
They were made in Mexico and had sandy brown packaging. I've had the
sandy brown and clear packaging before and they were good. This time
however it tasted like tge cheap Target brand. Honeymaid and not
nabisco grahams are the best Graham crackers bur now it's totally
downhill. I checked the expression date and it said May 2011, just
like the supermarket brand that I still have on hand. Maybe the
factory in Mexico is not abiding by tge same recipe, who knows? All I
know is that the poor tasting ones might as well be dog biscuits.

I'm so glad to see that others are responding to these negative
changes. This week I purchased several boxes of what once were my
favorite graham crackers to make my favorite cream cheese pie crust.
The first one was excellent; the signature flavor was great, the crust
moist and delicious.

I made a second pie with crackers from a second box, which still
looked the same, 10 crackers per clear "malar" type packaging, but
they were very, very different. Extremely dry and hard, difficult to
break, and lacking any flavor except one that really did resemble
cardboard. I proceeded with the pie, but the flavor was so
sub-standard, I didn't even bring it as a gift, as I had intended.

I decided to make a third pie, with a new box. This time, the crackers
were wrapped in that new style of plastic that everyone is talking
about; it looks a little like that coffee-colored packing tape. There
were also 9 instead of 10 crackers. I compare them with the one
leftover package I had from the other box, which had ten and wished I
had had a good digital scale. The company posted that the weight was
the same on each box and I had no way to test if this were true. I
usually crush the crackers in the packaging with a wooden spoon, to
get them started, and then remove the rest and bring in another tool
to finish the job in the bowl. I was able to crush these crackers
completely with my hand, right in the package, all the way down to
crumbs. At first, I thought this was a plus, then I tasted them, and
was very dissapointed as they had that same poor, cardboard-like
flavor as the last bunch.

Then I decided to take a picture of a package of crackers next to the
box that they came in. First off, the crackers in the first box, with
the original clear wrap, made in the USA, had an expiration date later
than the second box, with the newer style packing, less crackers and
made in Mexico.

What is going on here? Nabisco has been steadilly raising their prices
for years now, pushing the price of their graham crackers to such a
level where I stopped buying them to enjoy on a regular basis, as they
were a family favorite, and only purchase them to cook with. I don't
need to provide an overview of the breadth of this company to anyone
here, as we all know how many products they produce. Check Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabisco

and you will find a once proud history which has become nothing but a
shameful buying and selling, a shell game of name brands and products
to the top bidder.

If you want to get a big headache, read the section on mergers and
divestitures. In 1985, Nabisco was purchased by tobacco giant R. J.
Reynolds, then, as one of the biggest leveraged buyouts in history, it
was sold to a private equity firm. (There was actually a book written-
and a subsequent film- made about it called Barbarians at the gate:
the fall of RJR Nabisco!) Eventually our once excellent company was
apparantly purchased by Philip Morris, yup, another tobacco giant. The
profits must not have been enough for for PM, because Nabisco, under
Krafts Foods, was "spun off" in 2007, but it does not say to whom. All
I know now is that the graham crackers are awful, and the
company,appears to be making them in Mexico. What are we to say now?
Thank you for taking more jobs away from the United States

Shame on you, Nabisco and your so-called parent companies. What has
happened to this country, it's manufacturing base, and its once
excellent products? Our family and friends are putting an end to this
ugly spiral and divesting ourselves. We are switching to others
products, and this weekend, are even trying a new recipe which was
recommended hands down by a good friend and her kids:

http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/05/graham-crackers/

I hope more people will complain to Nabisco and force the qualitative
changes that are necessary to restore this once great American treat.
In the meantime, Nabisco has lost our business.

Margaret

Thank you Thank you Thank you - for writing about the drastic changes
in Nabisco Honey Maid Graham Crackers. I too have noticed these same
changes. Nabisco Honey Maid Graham Crackers has been a favorite of
mine for many years but because of these changes and the extreme rise
in cost I no longer buy them as often. Once a month is my limit rather
than every week.....Sorry Nabisco but you're only fooling yourself if
you think we customers don't realize what you're doing.

Jan 22, 2011
Just had my first new red box Nabisco Original Graham Crackers.
Crackers are narrower and definitely taste different. My daughter
thinks they're tasteless compared to the old. Packaged in wax paper
and can be opened without the need for a knife (big improvement).
Noticed for the first time that they are "Made in Mexico". Explains a
lot! Please try the new red box and comment.

I am also a long time consumer of Honey Maid crackers. I keep a stash
of a least six boxes in my pantry at any one time. A few weeks ago I
opened a new package. The first thing I noticed was that the aroma
was very ununappetizing. I thought maybe I'd left them in the pantry
too long and checked the date. Nope they were new. I agree with
others they were hard, tasted stale...about like they smelled. I
happened to have an older box and compared the two. The older box
says 5 grams of whole grain and the newer one says 8 grams. There was
no difference in the nutritional information. I say go back to the
original formula or I'm going to another brand!

I just opened a new box of graham crackers, not only were they smaller
but more importent they tasted different. This taste difference was
not an improvement but tasted like other plain old graham crackers
that I could buy for a much reduced price. My daughters went to have
a bowl of graham crackers and without me saying anything said there
was something different about the crackers and did not even finish
them. I find it hard to believe that NABISCO did not do a comparison
test of new verses old and stay with the old.NABISCO just lost my
business.

It's the off taste and texture that bother me. It's plain to see the
weight change on packages- many companies are spiraling down to
"single serving" packaging- (what a waste of money to transport and
create additional garbage).

The taste is truly awful- a nasty lingering stale aftertaste- no
graham flavor- hard, sticky texture.

I remember as a kid opening the waxed paper envelopes,
eating a cracker, and then waiting for a day or 2 for them to turn
soft and chewy- excellent with milk!

Today's version is a sad version- I think they might be making them in
China- that would explain the staleness.

Thank you for your post. I, too, am a lover of graham crackers and in
particular Nabisco Honey Maid. This morning, however, I opened a new
box and found them to be smaller and harder. I going to try other
brands now, too, and see if there is a better alternative. Honey Maid
used to be the standard of best graham crackers - I would be willing
to pay more because of it - but not anymore.

So am I. I just bought a store brand and another brand to compare. I
am SO MAD at nabisco!!! Enough already. kathi in oregon

I just purchased my first box of Nabisco Honey Maid Graham Crackers
for the first time since I was a little girl. For some reason, I
started craving them. This will absolutely be my last. They totally
taste stale! Where did the crispness go that I remember? Honestly, I
ate two of them and I think I'm going to feed the rest to the ducks!

Bring back the old receipe please! And, what about the size of the
cookie -- quit shinking our food.

Will never buy again until I hear that the crispness is back and will
continue to try and find a brand that tastes like the old Nabisco
graham cracker.

My family and I have all grown up on Nabisco Honey Maid Graham
crackers. However, they are no longer the high quality product they
were decades ago.

I agree with another writer's reference to "stale taste", as the
ingredients that are currently being used are of a lesser quality
themselves. The taste of "graham" is sorely lacking.

The shrinking of the crackers is unforgivable. In times when we look
for even greater value in our money spent, the shrinkage impacts
beyond just the single serving factor. Recipes that use the graham
crackers as a key ingredient are also altered, and not positively I
might add. The consumer is not as stupid or blind as these
corporations would like to think.

Nabisco is showing itself for the greedy corporate / bottom line
thought that guides them, as opposed to being the consumer driven
company they once were. In Corporate America, greed wins / consumer
looses.

I agree with holding "taste test parties" (like a Tupperware
gathering). Then, as groups of consumers let's find the products /
corporations who still remember that it is the consumer that made them
wealthy in the first place.

Eating is an important event. Times are lean. Money is tight. Why
is Nabisco treating the consumer this way?

I did not vote for change. I agree these are tough economic times.
Shrinking my cracker is not acceptable. Taking away from consumer "The
bread and butter" to maintain profits will contribute to losing their
customer to other brands. We all had to tighten our belts. Nabisco
should also, but not by decreasing the quality/quantity of their
products.

I voiced my opinion, see below, on Nabiscoworld.com, selected Help (on
the bottom) then General - it brings up a box to give your
input/question etc. feel free to copy and paste anything you might
want from below..
****************************

Honey Maid Graham Crackers... it seems that the recipe has been
changed. The new recipe is NOT good. The crackers now have a "stale"
taste, meaning they are not crispy. these crackers have been a staple
in my home since i was a kid. The size or the crackers has also
changed as well as the number of crackers in each package. Why wasn't
the outer box size changed as well? This seems like a waste of raw
materials, there is probably an inch of open space that allows the
crackers to move and break. All the changes that were made are seen
as a bad business decision. PLEASE put it all back like it was!!!
Why do company's have a GREAT Product and then change it? For the
amount of money you are saving per box -you will loose far more
customer base. There is actually people doing taste tests to find a
"good" graham cracker out there on the internet.. I will keep looking
myself..

They changed the formula and they do NOT taste like they once did. I
can deal with the size change if they still taste good but they don't!
They taste more like cardboard dunked in milk now! I have eaten these
all my life...can't believe they changed the formula!!! Whole family
is disappointed...need to find something else to dunk in milk now.
:^(

Wow! I couldn't believe it. The packages inside the box were about an
inch shy of the top. They kept the boxes the same so you don't realize
if you realize at all that the grahams are smaller. I'm going to do
the taste test too. After all these years, I'm buying some thing else.

Will Meiklejohn
Corning, NY

I have to agree. I was munching happily on a graham and noticed it
went awfully quickly. I said to my husband, "Honey, aren't these
graham crackers smaller than they used to be". He said, "They sure
are".

It was bad enough when a pound of coffee ended up being only 11.5 oz.
Et tu Nabisco? Tisk Tisk

Nabisco blew it! I would have felt better if they had plastered "NEW
SMALLER SIZE" on the box!
I actually went online to see if anyone else had even noticed this! I
haven't had a graham cracker in over a year an wow, the are smaller!
They are so narrow I have no trouble getting them into the glass of
milk! Other products probably get away with shrinking sizes but those
of us who have been eating the same brand of cracker and dunking it in
our milk for over 40 years feel put out!

I agree. I am very disappointed in the new color, shape and taste.

Indeed, you are right, they did shrink them. Why would they do this
when it used by so many to make smores. Didn't they think we would
notice?

I've bought other kinds. I recently bought some organic ones that
were very good. And, of course, Trader Joes has delicious cinnamon
ones. However, there are no Trader Joes in CO, where we just moved.
:-(

I'll be curious to hear how the taste goes. I'm going to contact them
and express dissatisfied I am that the graham cracker no longer fits
the chocolate bar.

I understand all the weight/volume issues and the idea that reducing
the size/weight/quantity/whatever rather than raising the price is
their way of keeping customers "happy". What I don't understand is
making a graham cracker that is a narrow little rectangle rather than
the tried and true square that we all grew up with and what we put our
Hershey bar and marshmallow in between.
Do what you want with the weight or the quantity, just make 'em square
again.

It is a disappointment opening the box and not seeing the olde
reliable Honey Maid Graham Cracker...Even though it is probably in my
mind, I'd swear they tasted different too...not a happy camper:o(.

I am glad that I found your post as I thought my imagination was
getting the best of me. Are you sure that the crackers are simply not
thicker? I have an older box that I just finished and the net weight
is the same as the new box with smaller crackers. Unfortunately, I do
not have any older crackers with which to compare weight and
thickness.

So sorry but those who attempt to minimize what the company has done
are missing the point. It makes no difference if other companies do
it; it makes no difference if reducing the size or quantity or weight
of a product is standard practice in an industry for thirty years. The
fact that a provider is charging the same price for a product or
service but reducing the quantity or quality without notice likely or
intended to provide the consumer with actual knowledge of what has
occurred is bad faith, and misleading at least. Dare I say that an
iconic company such as Nabisco has a position of trust with their
loyal customers.
I am 63 years old and have been a faithful customer of Nabisco Grahams
all my life to say nothing of all my fond memories of Nabisco smores
around many many campfires as a child, parent and grandparent.
Bad on you Nabisco-You can't treat your customers like this. I am
certain I can find another company that provides an acceptable
cracker.
Good bye old friend.

Brian

I just experienced that and was surprised and upset because they did
not change the calorie count etc. Tha is what bugs me the most!!!
I'm glad I found this posting. They should at least change all the
nutritional info.

"For your information, our family has decided to pursue a taste test,
and develop a price/value ratio for a number of private-label store
products as well as a several national brands. We are looking to
replace the Nabisco product with another more value oriented
offering."

Wow. That's just... wow. I'm impressed. Good luck finding the perfect
graham cracker! I like them with peanut butter and jelly. I use honey
maid myself.

I keep hearing a whispering voice in my head saying "we've replaced
Rick Jr's national brand graham cracker with Honey Maid. Let's see if
he can taste the difference!"

You must love your Graham Crackers to organize a family taste test and
compare taste to price.

"Announce this on the outside of your boxes and STOP trying to pull
the wool over consumer's eyes"

They do. It's called the weight/ounces. They aren't pulling the wool
over anyones eyes, it's right there on the box.

This is happening to almost everything, from sizes of bar soaps, to
cans of tuna, to Tropicana Oj, to Kleenex tissue, to bagged petfood,
to chubs of cookie dough.

There are many more, those are the ones I know off the top of my
head.

Its called reducing sizes to forgo higher costs, or minimal costs
increases.

With many store brands offering lower costs, nabisco has to market
itself as the superior brand, but also keeping costs down to match its
competitors.

Maybe you will just need to make an extra spot in your in your pantry
for a second box.


Good Day

So are you willing to pay more if they increase the size of the
crackers and the number of crackers in each package?

What Nabisco is doing is standard in the food industry, and has been
for 30+ years.