10 Supermarket Staples From the 1960s Most Younger Shoppers Have Never Seen

The American supermarket of the 1960s was a modern marvel. Aisles were longer and brighter than ever before, shopping carts were bigger, and new convenience foods seemed to arrive every month. Housewives were told that powdered drinks, instant mixes, and frozen dinners would set them free from hours in the kitchen.

Many of the products that filled those carts have since disappeared or become so rare that younger shoppers wouldn’t recognize them. Some were diet drinks that came before modern weight-loss shakes. Others were drink mixes, toppings, and desserts that families bought every week. A few weren’t even food, but they were still part of every shopping trip. If you pushed a cart behind your mother in the 1960s, these ten supermarket staples will probably bring back a flood of memories.

1. S&H Green Stamps

For many families, the best part of grocery shopping was the stamps. Stores handed out S&H Green Stamps based on how much you spent, and shoppers licked them and pasted them into little books. Full books could be traded for toasters, lamps, dishes, and other household items at redemption centers or through a catalog.

The Sperry & Hutchinson Company started the program in the 1890s, but it reached its peak in the 1960s, when millions of households saved stamps. Many boomers remember sitting at the kitchen table helping their mothers fill the books. The program faded in the 1970s and 1980s as stores turned to discounts and coupons instead.

2. Metrecal

Long before modern weight-loss shakes, there was Metrecal. Introduced by Mead Johnson around 1960, it was a liquid diet drink that promised to help people lose weight by replacing meals. A day’s worth of Metrecal provided about 900 calories, and it became a national craze almost overnight.

Lunch counters began serving Metrecal, and it came in flavors like chocolate and vanilla. But many people found it hard to stick with, and other diet products soon crowded the market. By the 1970s, Metrecal had faded away.

3. Sego

Sego was another popular liquid diet drink of the 1960s, made by the Pet Milk Company. It came in cans and was marketed heavily to women who wanted to slim down. Its ads featured slender, glamorous women and promised a simple way to control calories.

Sego was cheaper than many competitors and was sold in nearly every supermarket. It eventually disappeared as diet trends changed. Many women who grew up in the 1960s still remember their mothers drinking a can of Sego for lunch.

4. Funny Face Drink Mix

In 1964, Pillsbury launched Funny Face, a powdered drink mix meant to compete with Kool-Aid. Each packet had a cartoon character on it, and the flavors had silly names, like Goofy Grape and Freckle Face Strawberry. Kids loved the bright packets, and the drink was cheap enough for any family.

Some of the original flavor names were criticized as offensive to Native Americans and Chinese Americans, and Pillsbury changed them to Jolly Olly Orange and Choo Choo Cherry. Funny Face was popular for years but eventually disappeared from most stores in the 1980s.

5. Nestlé Quik

Chocolate milk powder was a staple in many 1960s kitchens, and Nestlé Quik was the brand most kids knew. Its mascot, the Quik Bunny, appeared in TV ads and on the can. Kids stirred the powder into a glass of cold milk and watched it slowly dissolve.

The product is still sold, but younger shoppers may not recognize the name. In 1999, Nestlé renamed it Nesquik in the United States to match the name used in other countries. Many boomers still call it Quik out of habit.

6. Dream Whip

Before Cool Whip, there was Dream Whip. General Foods introduced the powdered whipped topping mix in 1957, and it was a hit in the 1960s. You mixed the powder with cold milk and vanilla, then whipped it with a mixer until it was fluffy.

Dream Whip was cheaper than real cream and lasted for months in the pantry. Grandmothers used it on pies, Jell-O desserts, and fruit salads. It is still sold in some stores, but most younger shoppers have never seen it, since Cool Whip and canned whipped cream took over.

7. Pream Powdered Creamer

Pream was one of the first powdered coffee creamers sold in America. It came in a glass jar and was made from dried cream and other ingredients. Families used it when they ran out of fresh milk or cream, or when they wanted coffee on a picnic or camping trip.

Pream was a common sight on kitchen counters and in office break rooms in the 1950s and 1960s. It was eventually overshadowed by Coffee-mate and other non-dairy creamers. Today, Pream is mostly remembered by boomers and collectors of vintage kitchen jars.

8. TV Dinners in Aluminum Trays

Swanson introduced its famous TV dinners in 1953, and by the 1960s, they were a supermarket staple. Each meal came in a divided aluminum tray, with compartments for meat, potatoes, and vegetables, and sometimes a little dessert. You heated it in the oven for about 25 minutes and ate it in front of the television.

When microwave ovens became common, Swanson switched to microwave-safe trays in the 1980s. The aluminum trays became a symbol of the era. Many boomers still remember peeling back the foil and hoping the apple cobbler wasn’t burnt.

9. Jell-O 1-2-3

In 1969, Jell-O launched a dessert called Jell-O 1-2-3. You mixed the powder with water and ice, poured it into dessert glasses, and as it chilled, it separated into three layers: a fluffy mousse-like top, a creamy middle, and a clear gelatin bottom. It felt like magic to kids.

The dessert was popular for many years and was a favorite for parties and holiday dinners. It was discontinued in the 1990s, and fans have been trying to recreate it at home ever since. Many people who grew up with it still talk about its three colorful layers.

10. Tang

General Foods introduced Tang in 1959, but it really took off after NASA astronauts used it on space missions in the 1960s. Tang became known as the drink of the space age, and ads showed astronauts and rockets alongside the orange powder.

Moms bought big jars of Tang because it was cheap, easy, and full of vitamin C. Tang is still sold today, but it’s far less common in American kitchens than it once was. For many boomers, it’s a taste of the excitement of the space race.

Why These Products Disappeared

Many of these products faded as tastes and lifestyles changed. Diet drinks like Metrecal and Sego were replaced by newer weight-loss products, and powdered toppings gave way to frozen and canned versions. Some products were simply discontinued as companies merged and cut their product lines.

Others were overtaken by new technology, like the microwave. The supermarket of today looks very different from the one of the 1960s, though many of those staples now show up in the Smithsonian’s American history collections, with the things families had at home in that decade.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

For boomers, these products are a reminder of their parents’ kitchens and the excitement of new foods. They also show how quickly the American supermarket changed in just a few decades. What was once modern and exciting is now nostalgic.

If you still have a Green Stamps book or a Tang jar tucked away, you may have a small piece of history. These items belong with the forgotten household items of the past.

Which of these supermarket staples do you remember, and which one would you buy again if you could? Many readers say Jell-O 1-2-3 is the one they miss the most.