When I was growing up in the ’70s, there were fewer victories greater than my mom agreeing to buy the variety pack of mini cereal boxes. Apple Jacks, Froot Loops, Frosted Flakes, some healthy option I ignored, all shrink wrapped together for glorious consumption while watching Saturday morning cartoons.
Being a modern, health-conscious parent, those sugar-packed treats of yesteryear are verboten in the Albrecht household. Which is why I’m excited that Magic Spoon announced today that it is now offering its low-carb, protein-packed kids-cereal-for-adults in mini-boxes.
Spoon devotees might remember that we went a little ga ga over Magic Spoon cereal last year. (We even did a whole podcast about it.) Instead of sugar, the company uses Allulose, a sweetener found in sources like figs and raisins, and as I wrote at the time:
I dug into a bowl of the Fruity cereal this morning and it tastes just like the sugary cereal of my youth, but has only 8g of carbohydrates 0g of sugar and 3 net carbs for keto counters (Froot Loops has 26g of carbs, 12 grams of sugar and 23 net carbs). It doesn’t really taste like any actual fruit, it tastes “pink” to my tastebuds (which is probably influenced by its shocking pink color), but Spoon Founder, Mike Wolf thinks it tastes exactly like Froot Loops. Regardless of any synesthesia, I ate a whole bowl and was ready to eat more.
The only catch to this enchanted cereal was the fact that it cost $40 for a four pack of 7 oz. boxes. And up until today, you had to buy it in a four pack.
Magic Spoon’s new mini boxes aren’t exactly cheap. A twelve-pack including a variety of fruity, frosted, cocoa and blueberry flavors will set you back $29. Each 1 oz. mini box of Magic Spoon contains 12g of protein, 3g of net carbs and 110 calories.
The company raised $5.5 million in September last year and said at the time it planned to use its new funds to expand its business. These mini-boxes actually seem like a pretty smart way to do that.
With its low-carb, high-protein formulation, the mini boxes could open up Magic Spoon into the snack category. Additionally, in the time of coronavirus and social distancing, having individual, single-serve boxes could make it easier for Magic Spoon to get into offices or cafeterias. Though, single-serving boxes also creates more packaging waste.
Magic Spoon’s mini-move also steps on rival The Cereal School, which offers its healthier cereal in single serve bags.
Regardless of the reasons, the arrival of Magic Spoon minis may just mean that have to clear my Saturday morning, fire up some classic cartoons and enjoy a few bowls of cereal.
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