Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are components of the standard three square meals a day dietary format followed by most. But this structure only came about with the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, when factory workers' schedules mandated their eating patterns, with a morning meal to prepare for the day ahead, a midday break to refuel, and finally, an after-work meal. If people were hungry in between meals, they typically waited for the next one. Enter the snack.
While snacking is not a novel idea, it was taken to new heights in the mid-20th century. Since the early snacks debuted, small bites like Cracker Jacks, Americans have been hooked on snacks. Even during the Depression, the world was given Twinkies, Tootsie Pops, Fritos, and Lay's Potato Chips. The choices have only blossomed since then.
From movie-watching to sports outings, snacks have become an instrumental part of our diets, especially the American diet. According to Euromonitor International, the U.S. snack market in 2022 was an estimated $150.6 billion, up more than $30 billion from the previous year, and is expected to grow by almost $20 billion by 2027.
To compile a list of nostalgic snacks from the '60s that need a return, 24/7 Tempo has consulted sources such as the Daily Meal, Snack Stack, Click Americana, MeTV, Snack History, General Mills, Groceries Gone But Not Forgotten, and Newsweek. Many of these snack options have been gone from grocery store shelves for years. (Check out the list of popular discontinued snack foods we really miss.)
Here are nostalgic snacks from the '60s that need a return:
