[Closed] Why are there no toys in breakfast cereal anymore?

[s]Cost[/s] elfinsafety innit.

Easier / cheaper / equally effective to offer the same prizes but with a mail in offer no-one will ever mail in.

(which was always at the bottom).

despite the TV ads which showed you a kid opening a new box, and a bright shiny toy neatly dropping straight out onto a perfect bowl of cereal.

Nope, you shoved your arm in up to the elbow and rootled about at the bottom for whatever poxy plastic rubbish lay inside. 😆

Ghostbusters sticker things in Shreddies were a real highlight. I might be showing my age... Sadly now its check a code in the website and get, er, not much.

Frosties and Cornflakes reflector's.

Some people cockle-doo, some people cockle-don't...

When H&S took hold, they first started to put them in plastic bags. The end was nigh when the plastic bag with the toy in had to be in the box but outside of the bag of cereal.

🙁

Actually, they sound a bit crap now but were amazing when you were seven.

Nothing that was exciting to us when we were seven would even slightly interest a 7 year old today.

Apart from lego obviously.

That said I'm pretty sure when I was seven 45year olds weren't as excited about lego as they are today.Perhaps all the plastic toys that were in boxes of cereal in the 1970s and 1980s will reappear in boxes of Tena Men in the 2030s and 2040s

The end was nigh when the plastic bag with the toy in had to be in the box but outside of the bag of cereal.

I've still got a Frosties reflector, it's now on my 4 year olds bike, handed down through generations.
Sort of!

My favourites were the wee submarines that you filled with bicarbonate of soda. They sank in the bath and then bubbled back up to the surface!

little aeroplane models for a while, total guff but at the time the best thing in the world

little aeroplane models

Were amazing.

the wee submarines

Were amazing.

Little plastic models of [url= http://www.mokarex.fr/kelloggs_taram_uk.html ]The Horned King[/url]

Were amazing.

Simpler times...

🙂

dr who cards in weetabix, memories.

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....and collecting tokens from packets of mash for a rubber mash Martian.

H+S has a lot to answer for.
I remember those submarines, they were great.
Feel genuinely a bit sad that a lot of today's kids wouldn't be interested in anything other than a computer game.
Not sure how many Airfix models would be sold today if it wasn't for eager Dads reliving their childhood?

Children of the 70s may remember these:

[img] [/img]
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I wrote to Weetabix when I got a packet with no Dr Who stand up figures and they sent me the full set. Probably my favourite piece of customer service ever.

Once found about 25 Power Ranger figurines in a box of corn flakes, king of the playground for about 5 minutes whilst they were swapped for other stuff.

Also found 2x £5 notes in mini cheders, rememeber when crisps had those blue packets that sometimes had vouchers, sometimes money in them? And how if you had a packet of Smiths Salt'n'shake the packet looked identical so you'd drop it in your mates bag?

Feel genuinely a bit sad that a lot of today's kids wouldn't be interested in anything other than a computer game

Don't be silly. Kids are still kids.

My daughter got a dancing Minion in her box of Chococrispis last week. Plastic crap, nothing like as exciting as the plastic crap we used to get of course.

So Spanish cereals at least do still contain toys.

Don't be silly. Kids are still kids.

It's bloody annoying that, despite being loads of time left on a particular offer, they move on to the next - we probably have <1 required number for >1,000 offers...

I loved the little boats and submarines that you filled with baking powder (I think) to make them go.

Before we all start laying into the HSE - does anyone know what piece of legalisation stopped them putting the toys in?

Because I seem to remember it was actually legalisation to stop manufactures overly promoting unhealthy food to kids.

In any case, "elf and safety gone mad" rules are 99 times out of a 100 caused by someone making a dubious claim for 'compo' and the lawyers have banned it and not because some funkiller in a high viz has weighed in.

My favourite was the plastic kits of North Sea Gas rigs that were in Rice Crispies sometime around the early 1970's

Ghostbusters sticker things in Shreddies were a real highlight. I might be showing my age...

Dungeons and dragons hologram cards.

Nope, you shoved your arm in up to the elbow and rootled about at the bottom for whatever poxy plastic rubbish lay inside.

Defo the start of my "problems" with other people touching or getting anywhere near my food...

Still got a few of the submarines, my 2 year old nephew (with the supervision of his mum who might just like them more than him) loves them!!

Nope, you shoved your arm in up to the elbow and rootled about at the bottom for whatever poxy plastic rubbish lay inside. 😆

Or be really 'helpful' and help load and unload the shopping from the car. Put the cereal box upside down and by the time you got home the toy had rattled it's way to the 'top' ready for the big pour our the next morning

mogrim - Member
My daughter got a dancing Minion in her box of Chococrispis .....Spanish cereals at least do still contain toys

must be about 5 years since been to Spain do Spanish supermarkets still sell sweet cigarettes?

I remember a little green plastic Concorde, came with corn flakes I think.

Were there also wee boats that you put bicarbonate of soda in, and the fizz propelled them along?

[img] https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT4-4FFAt7wKhk0cubxGd3M_i5cDis2BpWQmhRCX_-HX8U5kRTw [/img]

In any case, "elf and safety gone mad" rules are 99 times out of a 100 caused by someone making a dubious claim for 'compo' and the lawyers have banned it and not because some funkiller in a high viz has weighed in.

I'd expect a good percentage are actually "rules" that someone somewhere made up and presented as fact when the truth is nothing of the sort.

See also, Muslims wanting to ban Christmas and a raft of other hoary old tabloid fodder.

After putting in ebay alerts, I now have a replenished collection of Tony reflectors, Kellogs cockerel reflectors and Tony stickers
[img] [/img]

must be about 5 years since been to Spain do Spanish supermarkets still sell sweet cigarettes?

Not noticed any in my local supermarkets, I'll have a look tomorrow when I go shopping. If I remember.

Not sure it is Health and Safety because I had a box of American Lucky Charms around Christmas last year and that had a toy car in it. If you won't get sued for it in America then it must be fine.

My brother and I used to insist on, and receive, a 'young smoker' selection box at xmas. Chocolate fags, pipe and matches, which we would puff on/eat on xmas morning

If small toys in food were banned by H&S then Kinder Eggs would have disappeared long ago!

Surely with the cycling boom happening Frosties should start giving away those reflectors again? They'd sell box-loads to the parents if anything 🙂

I feel this is the point in these "where did they go" threads to mention white dog shit

I feel this is the point in these "where did they go" threads to mention white dog shit

lol,..there is barely dog shit at all now, let alone the rare white stuff, pure nostalgia,..thanks. 😀

No white dog muck - blame not feeding dogs bone meal, and the muck being bagged up.

No hedge pron - blame the web.

Ah, good times...

And what fool didn't open cereal packet from the bottom, so you could get the toy?! Basics, people.

I saw an albino turd 2 days ago. True story.

I saw an albino turd 2 days ago. True story

Regards there being less dog eggs about, all I can say is the Dog sh!t fairy must be on strike on the track near where I'am as its peppered with the stuff, to be fair most of its bagged up and swinging from branches like a badly decorated Xmas tree.

Flippa discs in shreddies were my favourite. Kids these days are so stupid they would try to eat them and their handler's would try to sue, hence no toys anymore.

I feel this is the point in these "where did they go" threads to mention white dog shit
lol,..there is barely dog shit at all now, let alone the rare white stuff, pure nostalgia,..thanks.

There are no toys in cereal anymore, but there is the joy of haribo in Wiggle deliveries.

Probably in a minority here, but Haribo sweets are awful. And their adverts suck. Or is that the other way round...

Think that is what started me getting out my bed early in the morning, to beat my sister to opening the new box of Rice Crispies for the toy.

Those plastic square clips you used to get with loaves of bread. Used to be in awe of mates who had both brake cables totally covered by them.

On the subject of Shreddies, disappointingly their quality control process has improved so nowadays you rarely, if ever, get double/treble Shreddies...once got 8 Shreddies together 8)

On the subject of Shreddies, disappointingly their quality control process has improved so nowadays you rarely, if ever, get double/treble Shreddies...

Say whut? That's almost as bad as taking the toys out. Finding a quadrupler in your bowl made your week, and king of the house for a day.

And those reflectors....my bike was covered in them. Two on each wheel. Frosties were the shit back then.

Ghostbusters sticker things in Shreddies

I got one of those when I was staying at my grandads, I thought it was amazing as it glowed in the dark. I gave it to the most amazing person I knew, my grandad.

Fast forward 25 years and I got his toolboxes when he sadly died, it's still stuck in the lid 🙂

I got a Shrek movie tie-in plastic thing in a box of cereal while camping 11 years ago. That may be the last time I bought any cereal other than Weetabix or Porridge though.

My fondest cereal packet novelty from my childhood were the cut out and assemble Star Trek space ships that appeared on some packets of Weetabix. I was little at the time so my dad made them and they were amazing.

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probably for the same reason as
[url= http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/moms_demand_action_for_gun_sense_in_america_kinder_egg ]this[/url]

dknwhy - Member
I loved the little boats and submarines that you filled with baking powder (I think) to make them go.

Yep!

I got one of those when I was staying at my grandads, I thought it was amazing as it glowed in the dark. I gave it to the most amazing person I knew, my grandad.

Fast forward 25 years and I got his toolboxes when he sadly died, it's still stuck in the lid

I inherited my grandfathers toolboxes too. Used the last but one of his Stanley knife blades (wrapped in oiled paper) only a few months ago and threw away the remnants of the electrical tape yesterday. Grandads and toolboxes are great and time is now ripe (I'm 40 and children still in primary school!) to be laying up stores now for my future grandchildren!

Anyone got a citation for the H&S reason?

I thought it was because of advertising rules about targeting children with toys, particularly for sugary foods.

Hmmm the cardboard startrek bridge cut out thing was cool 🙂

I always keep the wiggle haribos about for emergency anti bonk measures..

probably for the same reason as
this

That would mean we couldn't buy kinder eggs either.

Which we can obviously.

So probably nothing to do with that at all.

Reckon targeted advertising plays a big part - offer on a pack requires a likely online sign-up with a parents email address and then they can send 'further exciting offers', etc. Wouldn't be possible by giving a toy in the pack

If small toys in food were banned by H&S then Kinder Eggs would have disappeared long ago!

That would mean we couldn't buy kinder eggs either.

You can't in the US, Kinder Eggs are banned (it's a long-standing FDA rule IIRC).

You can't in the US, Kinder Eggs are banned (it's a long-standing FDA rule IIRC).

Since 1938, long before kinder eggs existed I suspect ?

My point was, the lack of toys in cereal packets in the UK isn't likely to be anything to do with that (or a similar (imagined) UK rule) otherwise we wouldn't be able to buy kinder eggs either.