Posted on 04/22/2025 6:49:52 PM PDT by Red Badger
Froot Loops probably don't lead your list when it comes to major differences between Canada and the United States. You might opt for Canadians' love affair with hockey, or poutine.
Still, a Redditor blew the minds of many on the r/mildlyinteresting subreddit with a photo of the countries' Froot Loops side by side.
On one side was a notably flat collection of colors in the familiar ring shape. The other side was resplendent, like adjusting your phone from the battery saver mode.
"I assume the American ones are brightly colored," a user guessed.
Their hunch was correct, as the major distinction was due to a change that dates back almost a decade.
Under pressure from consumers and regulators, Froot Loops' parent brand, Kellogg's, was one of several prominent brands in Canada to make the transition from artificial colors to natural ones, per Canadian Grocer. Their Froot Loops use colors from sources such as turmeric, as The Washington Post noted.
The unnaturally bright U.S. Froot Loops, meanwhile, feature artificial food dyes including Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 1, and Yellow 6, according to Kellogg's. These dyes are purely cosmetic — the shiny thing that makes you want more.
They remain abundant in the states despite a concerning amount of evidence linking them to "adverse behavioral trends" in children, as one study put it. Some countries ban these dyes, whereas their use is prominent in others.
The Post reported how Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. greatly exaggerated the lack of ingredients in Canadian Froot Loops while drawing attention to problematic food dyes, but that doesn't mean key differences don't exist. Many states are taking action to ban the use of artificial food dyes, and Red 3 was just banned by the Food and Drug Administration.
For consumers who want to avoid food dyes, checking out ingredient lists is a simple step to take.
The Reddit community reacted to the stark difference in the two Froot Loops.
"I instantly assumed that the ones that looked like they had literal paint in them were American," a user wrote. "I'm sorry, Americans, but the left ones look considerably more edible."
"Look, I am not buying a box of froot loops because I am concerned about health," someone else countered. "I want brightly coloured sugar rings, that's it."
None of those cereals existed when I was a kid in the 50’s. We ate Rice Krispies, shredded wheat, and sometimes Sugar Pops.
I tried them and found the overly strong artificial fruit flavoring to be disgusting.
Even as a kid, I never got what people saw in them.
And American ones are prettier colors, though.
Same here.
But we couldn't afford them.
They probably get enough Vitamin D from Poutine............
Or from “Kroff Dinner”.
Puffed Rice, Puffed Wheat, Wheaties, Sugar Smacks,Chex [rice, wheat and corn], Corn Flakes, Frosted Flakes and hot cereals like oatmeal, cream of wheat, cream of rice and Maypo.
I am sure there were others. But in addition to your list we had a variety of options in the 50’s.
I don’t much like the sugary cereals, I eat a lot of Cheerios and Oatmeal..............
I preferred the less sweetened ones myself, except for the Lucky Charms.
But they’re long off the menu these days as is most food.
My wife eats Lucky Charms every morning................
All the sugary cereals are useless carbohydrates.
Our food industry is in cahoots with our drug industry. Our people are fat and unhealthy; we have gobs of people with diabetes and who need drugs to loose weight. Trust no one.
Don’t eat that processed garbage and don’t take pharmaceuticals. Don’t drink soda. Drink water. Make your own food from scratch. It’s not that hard people. You are being made fat, ugly and sick deliberately so these huge corporations can make money.
Hamburgers! The cornerstone of any nutritious breakfast!
I don’t have a dog in this fight. I’m somewhat allergic to milk so I never really ate cereal. When the kids were younger I’d occasionally eat some dry. I actually really liked shredded wheat with cinnamon sugar coating. It’s probably been 30 years since I’ve had any though.
I’ve been desugaring in the last year with great results. (-35 lbs)
I really like what Sec. Kennedy is trying to accomplish. His press conference yesterday showed a serious man tackling a serious subject.
Yesterday I had some zero sugar strawberry yogurt. It was white with just a very slight hint of color. That told me there were no artificial colorants in it. Guess what? It still tasted fine, especially with a handful of fresh blueberries tossed into it.
We’re becoming more of a “shop the outer rows of the store” consumers.
My wife was just diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer so our already helathy eating is kicking up a couple notches.
Drink the milk leftover from a bowl of Cocoa Puffs. Not chocolate flavored. Distinctly vanilla.
Nobody should eat the contents of either box!
You are better off eating the box.................
More fiber!
I can hear how the board meeting went at Kellogg’s listen we paint the Cheerios and double the sales the kids will love them.
Later in life he got a job at Budweiser.
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