Keebler Munch’Ems – Crackers That Crunch Like Chips

Munch ‘Ems were snack crackers sold under the slogan “Crackers That Crunch Like Chips!” These crunchy, crispy, and scrumptiously delicious snacks are still considered all-time favorites. The snack was introduced in 1991 and discontinued in the early 2000s. 

If you have fond memories of this food from your youth, you are probably interested in learning more about its beginnings and current situation. In this article, we will explore all the interesting information about those delicious snacks.

Overview

Keebler has given us some very famous and delicious nibbles throughout the years. They have been especially popular for their ice cream cones and chocolate chip cookies. The Keebler Munch ‘Ems, on the other hand, is a food that is rarely discussed. These incredibly successful crackers were essentially a winning snack combination that is still quite popular today. 

Munch ‘Ems blended the potato chip-like crispiness and mouthwatering taste of Keebler’s famous snack crackers. They were available in a variety of flavors, including ranch and cheddar, sour cream and onion, and chill cheese.

Keebler offered each variation of Munch’Ems in lower sodium alternatives. Even though they sound fantastic, they were discontinued in the early 2000s because they didn’t do well as a snack. Many irate admirers were left wondering why they had vanished after their secret exit. 

Munch ‘Ems had to compete not just with other cracker manufacturers but also with generic supermarket brands that could nearly duplicate them. Therefore, it is predicted that many of these items would pass by unseen, vanish, and never resurface again or have the opportunity to be recognized and bought by a consumer. People don’t find out about them until someone who had previously bought and enjoyed them does so several years later. 

Even though Keebler’s financial situation wasn’t greatly affected by the collapse of Munch ‘Ems, it was a very significant thing for everyone who appreciated and adored the tiny crunchy crackers. Keebler’s Munch’Ems, unlike many other similar snacks, were baked rather than fried. The cost of a 7-ounce package was $2.13 at retail.

How Does Keebler Munch’Ems Taste?

Munch’Ems taste like sour cream and onion potato chips yet look and feel like crackers. These salty, crunchy crackers resemble potato chips in flavor and texture. Munch’Ems include various additional flavorings and spices in addition to having a very unique MSG flavor. The preferences vary, and some people like the original, while others prefer more random and limited flavors. 

The information on Munch’Ems is rather scant, and it may seem that the corporation tried its best to never bring these memories up again because there is no information on which flavors performed better or worse than the others. 

History of the Keebler Company

When exploring the history of Keebler Munch’Ems, it is important to delve into the origins of the Keebler Company itself, as the story of this iconic snack is intertwined with the company’s rich and fascinating history. In 1853, a man of German ancestry named Godfrey Keebler established a bakery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Over the years, his company established connections with several other bakeries in the area and across the nation. In 1927, these bakeries combined to become the United Biscuit Company of America. 

In addition to Keebler, United Biscuit owned regional bakeries such as the Strietmann Biscuit Company in Mariemont, Ohio, and the Hekman Biscuit Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

As well as the Denver-based Bowman Biscuit Company, which utilized the Supreme brand, in 1963, United Biscuit continued to use the regional brand names while introducing the Kitchen Rich brand on a nationwide scale. When United Biscuit decided to establish a standardized brand name, Keebler was selected as both the company’s name and the national brand.

Keebler’s Impact on the Snack Food Industry

As Keebler’s primary brand of saltine crackers, Streitmann’s Zesta saltine brand was adopted. In 1936, Keebler-Weyl Bakery was chosen as the official baker of Girl Scout Cookies, becoming the first for-profit enterprise to do so. Believe it or not, only four businesses were making sweets by 1978. The Keebler division with the current production license is Little Brownie Bakers.

In 1974, United Biscuits, with its headquarters in West Drayton, Middlesex, England, purchased Keebler. In the 1980s, Keebler entered the bagged salty snack industry and introduced several popular and ground-breaking snack chips, including Tato Skins, O’Boisies, and Pizzarias.

Despite plans to spin off its snack chip business in 1995, United Biscuits was eventually sold to a private equity group and a partnership between Flowers Industries and Artal Luxembourg. In an IPO in 1998, Artal Luxembourg sold its shares of Keebler. Sunshine Biscuits was acquired by The Keebler Company in 1996.

Keebler in the 21st Century

The Keebler Company obtained a license to create snacks inspired by the well-known children’s program Sesame Street in 2000. The Kellogg Company acquired the Keebler Company in March 2001. At that time, the company’s corporate offices were in Elmhurst, Illinois. Keebler then had factories in the US, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia. 

The sale of Keebler cookies and other affiliated brands to Ferrero SpA for $1.3 billion was announced by Kellogg on April 1, 2019. The purchase is a part of Ferrero’s plan to acquire brands that have been overlooked within the portfolios of larger food firms. Other Keebler items, such as crackers, are still subject to Kellogg’s or Sunshine trademarks. The transaction was finalized on July 29, 2019.

Ingredients

Baked snack variations of Keebler Munch’Ems come with different ingredients. However, generally, it is made of enriched flour, dehydrated potatoes, vegetable shortening, modified food starch, onion powder, dried garlic, soy grits, oleoresin of paprika, and so on. 

As for nutrition, the snack has around 140 calories per serving, which is 1.07 oz. The amount of total fat in the package is 8%. The Keebler Munch’Ems have no cholesterol. Total carbohydrates are 9% of the snack. Those crackers include 6% protein, 6% vitamin C, 2% calcium, and 4% iron. 

Nutrition

Serving Size:	1 Plate (140 g)	% Daily Value *
Amount Per Serving
Sugar	0g	0%
Protein	3g	0%
Calories	140 kcal	7%
Trans Fat	0g	0%
Cholesterol	0mg	0%
Potassium	0mg	0%
Vitamin A	0IU	0%
Iron	0.72mg	4%
Sodium	260mg	11%
Calcium	20mg	2%
Fat Calories	45kcal	0%
Carbohydrate	20g	7%
Total Fat	5g	8%
Saturated Fat	1.50g	8%
Fiber	1g	4%
Vitamin C	4.80mg	8%

Packaging

Most likely, people were drawn to the packaging’s elf figures and the distinctive color scheme of the Keebler packaging. However, the Munch’ems come In their most basic form. The corporation may have believed it needed to show the right level of inventiveness to compete with its rivals, so it launched the crackers in a variety of flavors.

Original Keebler Munch’Ems came in a box of 7-ounce packaging that was decorated in the color blue. On the front, “Munch’Ems” is written in large white letters. In the top middle corner, we see the statement: “Irresistibly light and crispy crunch!” with yellow letters on a dark blue background. In the bottom middle part, different flavor names are written.

For example, you will see the “Original,”  “Ranch,”  “Sour Cream and Onion,”  “Cheese,”  “Nachos,”  etc. On all packaging, the Keebler Munch’Ems Crackers are featured and shown. 

Munch’Ems Cheese has a different design from all the others. It comes in all yellow-themed white, light yellow, and orange colors. Munch’Ems in the “Nachos” flavor, on the other hand, have an all-pink background.

Logo

How Keebler Munch’Ems Failed

Given that Keebler has other items to offer, Munch’ems’ failure doesn’t seem to be a major setback for the firm. Stores want products that sell quickly because otherwise they will go bad and they will lose money because they will buy the food and never sell it before the shelf life expires. This is why the Munch’ems were discontinued.

Many individuals think Keebler Munch’Ems wasn’t distinctive enough. The business might not be generating enough sales or name-brand awareness. They may have believed that the product wasn’t distinctive enough and sought to stand out as a result. 

Although the Keebler Munch’ems may be gone, there are unquestionably duplicates that are either now available and selling well or have already been produced and will soon be gone since consumers didn’t find them to be particularly distinctive. 

Food businesses sometimes experiment with new goods, and the Munch’ems appeared to be one of those experiments. There is the possibility that the snacks would be brought back  because they don’t have as many devotees as some other goodies that have been removed. However, one could always purchase copies.

Keebler Elves – a Beloved Mascot

The Keebler Elves, beloved mascots of the Keebler Company, have been a fixture of the brand’s advertising campaigns for decades. Led by the iconic character of “Ernie” Keebler, these animated elves have become one of the most recognizable and enduring commercial characters in American popular culture. In the commercials, the Keebler tree logo is frequently transformed into the tree in which the elves reside.

The elves were made in 1968 by the advertising firm Leo Burnett Worldwide, which called the bakery “The Hollow Tree Factory.” 

In 1969, J.J. Keebler served as the first “king elf,” and Alan Reed Sr. provided J.J.’s voice in the educational video “Show and Sell” on the creation of animated ads. In 1970, Ernie Keebler was appointed “head elf.” Ernie has white hair and is dressed in a green jacket, a red vest, a white shirt, and a yellow tie. Walker Edmiston was Ernie Keebler’s initial voice actor, followed by Parley Baer, Frank Welker in 2007, and Richard Henzel in 2016.

Pictures

Commercials

Bottom Line

In this article, we explored the unique, crunchy snack Keebler Munch’Ems. The original flavor of Munch’Ems is somewhat similar to that of potato chips. As was noted in the previous paragraph, crackers are quite popular among many snack producers, and there is a tough rivalry. Keebler Munch’Ems first struggled like many others but eventually gained popularity. Unfortunately, the snack was discontinued and is no longer available.