America's top snack brand

Surprisingly, the "best perceived" US snack brand is Ritz. Lay's is number two, followed by Doritos. For potato chips, I prefer Pringles because of their perfect uniformity and can, but they barely made the top 10, landing just above Triscuit, which I also love, preferably with Munster. "Snacks Rankings" (YouGov Brand Index via Dave Pell's NextDraft)

• [Andrew Gray]

  It’s not a tracking of popularity, it tracks “perception.” Ritz is the “best perceived” snack cracker.  But I enjoyed the old commercial.

  • [David Pescovitz]

    ok, I updated my post. thanks.

• [chellberty]

  ..and this is Andy Griffith MOOOOO ving on down the line.

• [mmrtnt]

  You know, I thought you meant Munsters at first.

• [Qazynga.com]

  what a throwback chimerical, funny but true Ritz does make everything taste good! :) 

  • [Editz]

     Chimerical?  Ritz are a fantastic reality my friend!

    • [Qazynga.com]

      meant commercials, my friend!

• [Tennnfan]

  Andy Griffith was such a pro. Try saying “Crisp Ritz Cracker” five times and making it sound like something you want to eat. 

• [Roger Nattkemper]

  You like Pringles for packaging. Since they were the only thing I could get when I was overseas, the charm of them quickly soured. Give me deep fried potato slices not reconstituted potato mush. Also, bags, in my opinion, better than tennis ball cans that could possibly cut me if I dared to reach inside them. I know I know, picky picky.
  You can have my Pringles if that is ever an issue.

• [cjporkchop]

  —Warning: Pedantry Ahead—

  Pringles are actually potato *crisps*, not chips.

  In this country, potato chips are slices of a whole potato. Crisps are not. In the case of Pringles, they’re made from dehydrated potato meal, wheat starch and various types of flour.

  • [Flashman]

    Not sure what country you’re talking about, but in general it’s pretty much accepted that Pringles aren’t *really* potato chips (or potato crisps in the UK; maybe that’s what you’re referring to), and I don’t think they even try to make that claim on the tube. They are very more-ish… less so after you realise you’ve eaten 7/8ths of the tube and your tongue feels kind of burned.

    • [cjporkchop]

       In the blurb, David Pescovitz states “For potato chips, I prefer Pringles.” I was pointing out that they are not technically potato chips, according to the U.S. definition.

      I should have specified that by “this country” I meant the States. IIRC, in the UK “crisps” are what the US calls “chips” and what the UK calls “chips” are what the US calls “French fries.”

• [twianto]

  That’s because Pringles are seriously revolting. Not surprising at all.

• [timquinn]

  I just did a quick survey and found that -I- am the best perceived -me- among a very select and elite market segment.

• [$19428857]

  Everything tastes great when it sits on a Ritz? What about Aunt Bea?

  Now get that image out of your head.

• [B E Pratt]

  Don’t remember the exact numbers, but I once saw a graphic comparing the cost of a raw potato to various things made from it. Pringles came out mind-numbingly expensive. Now for some trivia, this from the Wikipedia about Gene Wolfe:  “He edited the journal Plant Engineering for many years before retiring to write full-time, but his most famous professional engineering achievement is a contribution to the machine used to make Pringles potato chips.”

• [William Lagakos]

  Fritos should get a bump for having only two ingredients: corn and salt.  And salt doesn’t even really count.  It’s truly amazing what food scientists can do.

• [Wayne Dyer]

  What really makes a snack brand for me is predictability.  I know exactly what to expect with a Ritz cracker.  And for everything on that list.  It’s not new and improved, they don’t tout “improved flavor” (What, it was crap before?  If you liked the old version  you were duped?  Of course “improved flavor” is usually code for “we cheapened the ingredients, that’s why it tastes different”)  Sure, they’ll monkey with other stuff to either grab new markets/novelty-seekers already in the fold or quash competitors (introduce a low-profit line, drive the competitor out of business with your brand affiliation, then kill the low-profit alternative), but if you tinker too much with the core offering, the brand becomes a label.

• [BDiamond]

  To this day, I still have “mmmm-mmmm!” and “good cracker … good cracker” popping into my head at odd hours of the day.
  /my lawn, you may remove yourself from it

• [pjcamp]

  Pringles are not made out of food.

  On the other hand, the Pringles frying machine was invented by Gene Wolfe (yes, that one).

• [Flashman]

  Don’t you have Ruffles in the States? Or do they fall under the Lay’s banner?  Up here Ruffles are probably the premier chip brand, but I have to say that the Loblaw’s supermarket’s President’s Choice varietals are presenting the incumbent with a pretty serious challenge

• [James Hardy]

  What’s with all the -eeto/-ito endings? (Cheeto, Dorito, Frito, Tosito)? I’m guessing one came first and the others copied it? Or is this something from another language coöpted into snack names?

  • [IronEdithKidd]

    Your last question; the answer is yes, and the language is Spanish.  Also, all four are products from the same coporation. 

• [Petzl]

  Talk about the effectiveness of saturation advertising vs. kids.  I still remember this ad and it’s like 30+ years ago. Insidious.

• [Nancy J Gill]

  “…Triscuit, which I also love, preferably with Munster”.  Herman? Lily? The cheese spelled Muenster?

  • [dnebdal]

    Or maybe the cheese spelled Munster (which is a different, French, one)?