Cheerios + Circus Peanuts = Lucky Charms? (Fun Facts about Food Friday)

Yep, that’s right.

Lucky Charms are actually the result of a challenge given to product developers back in 1962 to come up with a creative twist on one of their main cereals (either Cheerios or Wheaties). John Holahan came up with the idea of mixing circus peanuts with Cheerios. General Mills’ advertising company suggested marketing it around the idea of charm bracelets and voila, Lucky Charms were born!

Another fun fact is that the “cheerio” portion was not originally sugar coated, but it didn’t sell very well, so they tossed in more sugar and people suddenly loved it. It stayed the exact same way until 2005 when they released chocolate flavored ones and then later on, marshmallow treats.