9 Discontinued Snacks From the ’80s, ’90s and 2000s That Americans Are Still Begging to Bring Back
Some snacks disappear from store shelves and nobody notices. Others vanish and leave a hole in people’s hearts for decades.
Discontinued snacks have become a big deal online. TikTok is full of “core memory” taste tests and throwback snack videos, and brands have noticed. Fans write petitions, build entire websites and flood social media, hoping their childhood favorites will come back.
Here are nine discontinued snacks Americans still miss, along with a couple of happy endings that prove begging sometimes works.
1. Planters P.B. Crisps
If you enjoy this kind of thing, Frenz Hub’s 25 Nostalgic Items That Everyone Had 30 Years Ago, but No One Has Today is worth a read too. These peanut-shaped crunchy shells filled with peanut butter were a mid-’90s lunchbox favorite. They vanished from shelves, but the love never did. According to Cheapism, fans have built an entire website dedicated to bringing them back.
2. Philadelphia Cheesecake Bars
These single-serve cheesecake snack bars have one of the most passionate followings of any discontinued snack. Cheapism reports that one Change.org campaign tied to the bars has attracted roughly 90,000 supporters, with more petitions popping up since. We also covered this angle in 10 Drive-In Movie Snacks From the 1960s That Boomers Still Remember.
3. Butterfinger BB’s
Frenz Hub took a similar look at everyday life in 8 Little Rituals From the ’80s and ’90s That Disappeared Without Much Notice. The bite-sized, round version of the Butterfinger candy bar still shows up near the top of “bring it back” lists. Fox News included Butterfinger BB’s among the vanished ’80s and ’90s snacks fans still want returned.
4. Kudos Bars
Before protein bars took over the snack aisle, Kudos granola bars with chocolate chips or M&M’s were a lunchbox staple. The nostalgia is still strong: in January 2026, fans launched a new Change.org petition asking Mars to bring Kudos back, according to Cheapism.
5. Fruit Stripe Gum
The zebra-wrapped gum, famous for its burst of flavor that disappeared almost as fast as it arrived, has its own devoted fan base. Cheapism notes that multiple petitions, including campaigns launched in 2025 and 2026, show plenty of fans haven’t forgotten it. For a related read, Frenz Hub has 30 Easy Lunch Ideas for Kindergarten Kids.
6. SnackWell’s Cookies
It pairs well with our earlier story, The Bottom of the Bag: America’s Most Despised Halloween Candy. SnackWell’s was everywhere in the ’90s, during the height of the low-fat craze. According to The Daily Meal, Nabisco made SnackWell’s until 2017 and then sold the brand to Back to Nature Foods, which changed the formula and ultimately stopped production in 2022.
7. Shark Bites Fruit Snacks
These shark-shaped gummy fruit snacks, with the prized white “great white” sharks hidden in every pouch, were a ’90s lunchbox treasure. Many Millennials still list them among the snacks they miss most.
The Comebacks: Proof That Begging Works
8. Planters Cheez Balls
If you need proof that fan campaigns can work, look at Planters Cheez Balls. First introduced in 1981, the snack in its iconic blue canister was discontinued in 2006 after Kraft streamlined its snack lineup, according to Fox News. After years of petitions, social media campaigns and customer letters, Planters brought Cheez Balls and Cheez Curls back for a limited run in 2018, and Kraft Heinz explicitly credited popular demand, Cheapism reports.
9. Dunkaroos
The little cookies with a tub of sweet frosting for dipping were one of the most beloved lunchbox snacks of the ’90s. After disappearing from U.S. stores, Dunkaroos made a big return in 2020, and they’re still part of the nostalgia conversation today.
Why Old Snacks Keep Coming Back
Brands have figured out that nostalgia sells. The internet has turned the ’90s into an aesthetic, and taste tests of discontinued snacks rack up views. For shoppers in their 30s and 40s, a familiar package can bring back an entire childhood in one bite.
So if your favorite is still missing, don’t give up hope. Sign the petition, post about it and tag the brand. It has worked before.
