Are you an Oreo person or a Hydrox person? I guess I should change that to "were" because the Hydrox cookie is no more.
Now, this might not be news to everyone, since it happened in 2003! But Kellogg's was so low-key about it that a lot of people simply didn't realize it (besides hardcore Hydrox fans, of course). The Wall Street Journal investigated and found out that it was discontinued five years ago after the company realized they couldn't compete with Oreos. The interesting thing is that several people still say they see them once in a while, in stores and on airplanes.
I have to admit that I'm an Oreo person, and I think the reason why I never bought Hydrox was because I just thought they were a knockoff and tasted like Oreos. Now I wish they'd come back so I can try them again. Supposedly the cream in the middle was less sweet?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-22-2008 @ 3:49PM
Iscariote said...
My Dad liked these cookies, they tasted like crummy Oreos. You didn't miss anything.
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1-22-2008 @ 4:13PM
BigTed said...
People used to choose Hydrox because they didn't contain lard, while Oreos did. But Oreos dropped pig fat from its ingredients (though there's still plenty of not-so-healthy stuff in them), so there was no longer that much of a difference.
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1-22-2008 @ 4:26PM
JP said...
About ten years ago I compared the two and ended up preferring Hydrox -- the cookie part tasted less metallic.
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1-22-2008 @ 4:29PM
Emily said...
You're right about the cream part - it was definitely less sweet. Oreos make me feel queasy because of the sugariness, so Hydrox offered a more mellow alternative... and maybe a few more dips into the cookie jar. =)
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1-22-2008 @ 5:07PM
Kearns said...
Hydrox predated Oreos by about 4 years so if anything the Oreos are the knockoff. Though I've always preferred Oreos and were happy when they dropped the piggy ingredients (since it meant I could eat them again).
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1-23-2008 @ 8:59AM
leafy bombshell said...
Hydrox seemed to be less sweet and not quite as dark a chocolate. I do agree that they were a crumb-y Oreo in their essence. But, I love Oreos. Now.. is the Hydrox spotting like an urban myth? I could have sworn I saw some packs in my campus vending machines..... not recently though but definitely after 2003 since that was the year I entered college.
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1-23-2008 @ 10:53AM
kfober said...
I don't think I've ever heard of these, but I have to say "Hydrox" sounds like a cleaning product. What a strange name...
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1-23-2008 @ 5:18PM
Lindsey said...
Yeah, I'd guess that one reason they failed was the utterly unappetizing sound of their name. Kind of like ammonia cookies. But there's a whole different post...
Hydrox cookies always tasted like generic Oreos to me. Not as chocolaty, if I remember correctly.
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1-25-2008 @ 1:03PM
carole lietz said...
I think Oreos taste a little burnt, I always preferred Hydrox....If only they had made a double-stuffed! Then there would have been some real competition!
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2-07-2008 @ 6:34AM
Robin said...
Hydrox is definitely better than that mega-brand Oreo, but, in reality, Hydrox is definitely the loser: Oreo sales (I don't know the exact date but it's definitely during the 90s) are at $370+ million, while Hydrox (oh, it recently jumped in my mind that it was 1997, Hydrox's last year) had $16 million. I am in the Philippines right now, and I can taste the almost-exact Hydrox taste in combining our local chocolate sandwich cookies (which are definitely the knock-offs of the original knock-off Oreo)
Hydrox are always calling me at night when I was a kid, saying "Hey, I'm definitely better than the blue one because I'm crunchy and less sweet and kosher." We're Catholics yet we're kosher.
The Hydrox cookies are still in production at Kellogg's factories - as cookie crumbs for ice creams (ooh, Edy's) and yogurts...and as pie crust meal.
This year is Hydrox's centennial anniversary, while Oreo will have its own in 2012. =)
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3-07-2008 @ 5:04PM
jay said...
"the reason why I never bought Hydrox was because I just thought they were a knockoff" well thanks to everyone like you they are gone forever and hydrox were first. just like how cheez-nips are a ripoff of cheese-its. everything nabisco does is a ripoff of sunshine products.
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