Anonymous wrote:I haven’t had those recently, but have noticed that other packaged treats don’t taste like they used to. How much of that is a changing palate and how much is changed ingredients though I don’t know.

The last time I got Fruit Newtons I couldn’t believe how much they’d shrunk the individual “cakes” (they’re fruit and cake, remember?). I remember them as being about two inches long and nearly as wide back in the day and they are now closer to one and a half inches long and proportionally less wide.

But I remember the package shrinkage during the recession under Bush.

Food companies suck.

Have they actually shrunk, or are you just misremembering? Everything used to be smaller back in the day.

Milanos were always bad, even in the 90s. It's been a very long time since Pepperidge Farm used actually butter in their cookies.

I haven’t had those recently, but have noticed that other packaged treats don’t taste like they used to. How much of that is a changing palate and how much is changed ingredients though I don’t know.

The last time I got Fruit Newtons I couldn’t believe how much they’d shrunk the individual “cakes” (they’re fruit and cake, remember?). I remember them as being about two inches long and nearly as wide back in the day and they are now closer to one and a half inches long and proportionally less wide.

But I remember the package shrinkage during the recession under Bush.

Food companies suck.

They’re too dry and bready. Less chocolate ?

Grew up in an immigrant household were 99% of the food was homemade. I remember not liking the store-bought treats and candy I would get from classmates. M&Ms have always tasted like chemicals to me. I never understood why kids would go crazy for them. Hostess, little debbie, keebler... all that stuff always tasted waxy, filmy, and chemically to me. When your palate is acclimated to whole foods, processed foods taste weird. This is likely why you think that the items taste different -- you are likely eating better than you did 30 years ago and your taste buds have adjusted.

Anonymous wrote:Many cookies and some other treats (chips) leave a filmy coating taste to me now. Not sure if it’s the fat used or my noticing. It makes not eating cookies much easier

^^store bought cookies

Many cookies and some other treats (chips) leave a filmy coating taste to me now. Not sure if it’s the fat used or my noticing. It makes not eating cookies much easier

Anonymous wrote:I always wonder if it's me or the product that's changed.

I used to love Little Debbie's. Now they taste like waxy sugared cardboard. I cannot eat regular M&Ms at all but I can still woof down peanut M&Ms. Go figure.

I'm guessing part of it is me and part of it are the products themselves.

M&Ms and any Hershey chocolate are especially bad now. Ugh they are so gross. It’s amazing; how hard can it be to make chocolate candy taste good??

Anonymous wrote:I have always suspected it was trans fats. Once they started cracking down on that, everything tastes worse. Which is probably better in general but still disappointing sometimes.

This. They won’t use butter because $$$. The substitute don’t have same mouthfeel or flavor

They were always gross.

Anonymous wrote:Do you think it's possible your tastes have just matured?

When I was eating these things in the 90s as a kid, I never got home made food - it was all processed crap, Snackwells (remember the low fat craze?), etc. So milanos were high end. Now we make our desserts from scratch so when my kids get milanos for a sport snack or at a friend's house they just aren't that good.

No, I think they were actually pretty good. My parents were always making cookies, cakes, and pies from scratch, and I wasn’t really allowed a lot of processed food that other kids ate (I was so jealous!), but Pepperidge farm was allowed and it did taste pretty good. I remember the chocolate part being really good and the cookie part being kind of buttery.

I always wonder if it's me or the product that's changed.

I used to love Little Debbie's. Now they taste like waxy sugared cardboard. I cannot eat regular M&Ms at all but I can still woof down peanut M&Ms. Go figure.

I'm guessing part of it is me and part of it are the products themselves.

Do you think it's possible your tastes have just matured?

When I was eating these things in the 90s as a kid, I never got home made food - it was all processed crap, Snackwells (remember the low fat craze?), etc. So milanos were high end. Now we make our desserts from scratch so when my kids get milanos for a sport snack or at a friend's house they just aren't that good.

I have always suspected it was trans fats. Once they started cracking down on that, everything tastes worse. Which is probably better in general but still disappointing sometimes.

They are still essentially crack to me, I can't eat just one. Still true now as I got a box this year and experienced the same inability to control myself until half the sleeve disappeared.