# Why are Cheerios more expensive than Honey Nut Cheerios? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 21, 2011, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333 "2011-10-21T04:18:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/21 "2011-10-21T20:38:07Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > Next thing you know toddlers are holding up liquor stores to get their honey nut fix. Its not a pretty sight. I aint no expert on kids but try this. Offer em Cheerios for breakfast. Then offer em Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast. IME one is highly preferred as the choice to eat and that one will also be the one to be eaten in greater quantity when it is eaten. If the momma who doesnt care what crap the kids eat and doesnt like listening to the kids bitchin, offering the sweeter crap to her at a slight discount is a perfectly logical way for the company to in the end make more money off this particular person because the kids will eat more of it. They make a bit less per box but they end up selling more boxes than if they encouraged momma to buy the healthier stuff. And, for that matter, they can probably charge a slight premium for the healthier stuff because people who care about that sort thing are usually willing to pay a bit more (and like the OP, some will wonder why something with less crap in cost more). So, IMO it makes perfect sense either way you look at it and looking at it both ways makes even more sense. These facts may not be true and the this particular marketing/business logic may not have anything to do with the REAL motives and logic of Cheerios Inc. but it ain’t necessarily conspiracy voodoo craziness either. Joke for jokes sake and its all good. I like over the top humor myself too. Joke because you think your making a valid point and well…your not really doing that here. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/22 "2011-10-21T20:58:22Z")
All of the commercials for regular cheerios I’ve seen for the last few years have marketed them as a “health food”/“Good for your heart” thing, expanding the market to middle-aged health-conscious people. I wouldn’t be surprised if that has expanded the market enough up its aggregate demand over other cereals. ---
**Author:** ![brocks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7feea3/32.png) [@brocks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brocks)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2011, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/23 "2011-10-21T22:29:44Z")
> [@heathen\_earthling](#): > > In my experience, a 260 or 400 gram box of original, plain Cheerios costs the same as a 330 or 460 gram box of Honey Nut Cheerios, respectively. I can’t imagine how the Honey Nut variety costs _less_ for General Mills to produce, unless they are vastly more popular? Yeah, makes no sense. Where I live, it’s the same with shredded wheat — the frosted version of the same brand is cheaper. And when they go on sale with a coupon, the sugared version gets a big discount, but the regular version is ineligible. I’m guessing it’s due to the powerful diabetic testing supplies lobby. BTW, I am old enough to remember when having more sugar was a big selling point for children’s cereal. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/24 "2011-10-22T00:06:30Z")
> [@Tastes\_of\_Chocolate](#): > > Not “When can my kid eat cereal?” or even “When can my kid eat Cheerios?”, but specifically original Cheerios. So yes, at least at some levels, original Cheerios is being marketed at the parents of small children. I think that’s due to nut allergies. Babies aren’t supposed to eat anything with nuts until later than they can eat cheerios. ---
**Author:** ![colonial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/34f0e0/32.png) [@colonial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colonial)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/25 "2011-10-22T02:02:11Z")
I wonder if this AF guy has ever heard of Adam Smith: > [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > Yes, but discussion of economic theory and pricing does not usually take the form of “it’s a type of price gouging aimed at the mommy market”. That’s where it went off the rails. Aside from the whole hullabaloo over “price gouging” (which I have long argued does not exist), the market is saturated with substitutes that are just as good. If you think you’re being ripped off, get the big generic bag with twice as much for a dollar more. “Price gouging”, as it were, can only occur when there is no competition, because the competition will eat their lunch if they raise prices to an unsustainable level. The fact of the matter is that business conspiracy is one of the few categories of conspiracy theory in which charges are often true, and may be true in the majority of cases. None other than Adam Smith wrote of the severity of the problem as regards price fixing: [Wealth of Nations Book I 10.82](http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN4.html#B.I,%20Ch.10,%20Of%20Wages%20and%20Profit%20in%20the%20Different%20Employments%20of%20Labour%20and%20Stock) (from link, emphasis added): > [@](#): > > **People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices.** It is impossible indeed to prevent such meetings, by any law which either could be executed, or would be consistent with liberty and justice. But though the law cannot hinder people of the same trade from sometimes assembling together, it ought to do nothing to facilitate such assemblies; much less to render them necessary. Smith and all other level-headed commentators have always realized that business practices are not some sort of chrystal mystic perfection; rather, all too many businessmen are driven by greed to commit business fraud, sometimes alone, sometimes in collusion with others. It should not suprise anyone if businesses took unscrupulous, cooperative, conspiratorial pricing advantage of the desire of parents to provide he best for their children. ---
**Author:** ![heathen\_earthling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/13edae/32.png) [@heathen\_earthling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/heathen_earthling)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/26 "2011-10-22T02:52:00Z")
According to Wikipedia, Honey Nut Cheerios have contained no nuts since 2006. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/27 "2011-10-22T03:56:15Z")
> [@colonial](#): > > I wonder if this AF guy has ever heard of Adam Smith: > > The fact of the matter is that business conspiracy is one of the few > categories of conspiracy theory in which charges are often true, and > may be true in the majority of cases. > > Smith and all other level-headed commentators have always realized that > business practices are not some sort of chrystal mystic perfection; rather, > all too many businessmen are driven by greed to commit business fraud, > sometimes alone, sometimes in collusion with others. It should not suprise > anyone if businesses took unscrupulous, cooperative, conspiratorial pricing > advantage of the desire of parents to provide he best for their children. That doesn’t mean that General Mills is conspiring with anyone though. If they are targeting the ‘Mommy Market’, they’re more likely to do it entirely within the company than in collusion with anyone else. And they are free to set their prices as they wish, even in cooperation with their distributors (such as grocery store chains). They’re in a competitive market so I don’t think they’d be running afoul of any regulations. Setting their prices too high would just help their competitors sell more Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs. I think it would be more likely to see back end conspiracies where they attempt to fix the wholesale prices of the ingredients they use to lower their costs. ETA: That said, Adam Smith is the man when it comes to economics. ---
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/28 "2011-10-22T03:56:16Z")
> [@heathen\_earthling](#): > > According to Wikipedia, Honey Nut Cheerios have contained no nuts since 2006. But honey (in its raw form) is also verboten for infants under age one due to botulism risk. Sleep-deprived shoppers are going to see the product name and choose something else. Plus regular Cheerios are softer and easier to chew for a little one with only 4-8 teeth. Also, as I thought I recalled, I checked the nutrition information panel on the cereal box… there is a column for percentages and RDA for children under four. Definitely aimed at that specific market niche. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/29 "2011-10-22T04:18:12Z")
> [@heathen\_earthling](#): > > According to Wikipedia, Honey Nut Cheerios have contained no nuts since 2006. Hmm, my box actually says “Contains almond, may contain wheat ingredient” below the nutritional info. I guess “almond” is their new way of saying “natural almond flavour” as explained [here](http://www.weightymatters.ca/2010/09/why-are-there-no-nuts-in-honey-nut.html)? Kinda confusing. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2011, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/30 "2011-10-22T04:23:12Z")
> [@Lacunae\_Matata](#): > > As the mom of a little one, I’m a bit convinced that it’s a type of price gouging aimed at the mommy market. Products marketed toward infants seem to carry a mark-up in price. Sure they do it, but it’s nothing unique. Products are marked up whenever there’s a perception that there’s a clientele of sufficient numbers that’s willing to bear the higher price. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/31 "2011-10-23T14:01:46Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Sure they do it, but it’s nothing unique. Products are marked up whenever there’s a perception that there’s a clientele of sufficient numbers that’s willing to bear the higher price. In fact, it’s automatically the case. You charge what the market will bear, not based on some fixed percentage added to manufacturing costs. Prices only appear to correspond to manufacturing costs because that cost is often considered by the consumers when determining how much they are willing to pay. Making something seem more costly to manufacture than it is actually an often used marketing ploy. ---
**Author:** ![thelabdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@thelabdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelabdude)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2011, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333/32 "2011-10-23T17:54:14Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Making something seem more costly to manufacture than it is actually an often used marketing ploy. I pay more attention to dog food than my own. There is an enormous amount of hype on the net about ingredients in dog food. Use slightly more expensive ingredients, tell a good story, mark it up, and make a killing. Those buying your story will give you endless free advertising. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cheerios-more-expensive-than-honey-nut-cheerios/600333.md?page=1)