Honey Nut Clusters


Honey Nut Clusters is a breakfast cereal previously manufactured by General Mills which refers to the cereal as "crispy wheat & rice flakes with delicious honey nut flavored clusters." The manufacturer also points out on the package that it is a "low fat part of your heart healthy diet". A single serving contains 210 calories and 1 gram of fat. The cereal, originally known simply as "Clusters", first appeared in 1987.
The cereal gained popularity for commercials often depicting squirrels stealing the cereal by outsmarting the owners. Among the most popular was Robo-Squirrel, in which a cyborg squirrel does serious damage to steal the cereal.
Honey Nut Clusters is part of General Mills family of Fruit & Nut cereals, including Raisin Nut Bran and Basic 4. In 2009 the packaging on all of these cereals was updated to a different "family of cereals" look, however some consumers were disappointed and the company switched back to the legacy packaging currently on shelves. The recipe for this cereal was changed in April 2007, so that it no longer actually includes nuts, substituting natural almond flavoring in its place. The picture on the box no longer depicts the same almond clusters, but the name still includes the word nut. These changes may have been implemented to counteract rising Commodity market prices in 2007. It could also be presumed the recipe change was due to people's ever-expanding nut allergies.
A limited edition of the product called "Honey Nut Clijsters" was produced in 2008, with tennis player Kim Clijsters portrayed on the box.
The cereal is not produced anymore due to a "lack of sales" according to General Mills circa 2012 or thereabouts.