Cheetos facts for kids
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| Type | Cheese curl, popcorn, macaroni and cheese |
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| Owner | PepsiCo (via Frito-Lay) |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1948 |
| Markets | Worldwide |
| Previous owners | The Frito Company |
Cheetos are a super popular, crunchy snack made from corn. They are famous for their cheesy flavor! Charles Elmer Doolin, who also created Fritos, invented Cheetos in 1948. Today, Cheetos are made by Frito-Lay, which is part of a big company called PepsiCo.
Cheetos are sold all over the world. In 2010, they were the best-selling cheese puff snack in the United States. There are many different kinds of Cheetos, with over 20 types just in North America! The flavors can even change depending on the country. For example, you might find Savory American Cream in China or Strawberry Cheetos in Japan.
Contents
The Story of Cheetos
How Cheetos Began
Cheetos were invented in 1948 by Charles Elmer Doolin. He first made test batches in a special kitchen in Dallas, Texas. The cheesy snack became popular very quickly.
Mr. Doolin teamed up with Herman W. Lay, who sold potato chips. Together, they launched Cheetos across the U.S. in 1948. Because Cheetos were so successful, Doolin and Lay decided to join their companies in 1961. This created Frito-Lay Inc.
Growing Bigger
In 1965, Frito-Lay joined with the Pepsi-Cola Company. This created PepsiCo, which now owns Cheetos. This merger helped Cheetos become even more popular around the world.
Cheetos were not the very first cheese snack. Other companies had similar products. But Cheetos became the top-selling cheese puff in America by 2010.
Cheetos Around the World
As of 2011, Cheetos are made and sold by different parts of PepsiCo. This includes Frito-Lay in the U.S. and Canada, and other PepsiCo groups in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
In 2010, Cheetos made about $4 billion in sales worldwide. This made it one of PepsiCo's biggest brands.
In 2021, Cheetos production in Indonesia stopped for a short time. This was due to a business change between PepsiCo and a local company. The Cheetos brand in Indonesia was then renamed to new versions of "Chiki" snacks.
Cheetos Products and Flavors
Different Kinds of Cheetos
The first Cheetos product was Crunchy Cheetos, made in 1948. For 23 years, it was the only type. Then, Cheetos Puffs were introduced in 1971.
You can also find Baked Cheetos, which are not fried. As of 2010, there were 21 different kinds of Cheetos in the United States. These include different shapes, like Cheetos Paws and Cheetos Twists, and spicy flavors like Flamin' Hot Cheetos.
Cheetos are sometimes included in snack mixes like Frito-Lay's Munchies.
Healthier Options
In the mid-2000s, Frito-Lay launched "Natural Cheetos." These were made with all-natural ingredients and real white cheddar cheese. This line was later renamed "Simply" in 2014.
Global Flavors
Cheetos first arrived in Brazil in 1976 and Australia in the 1980s. In 1994, Cheetos became the first American snack brand made in China.
When Cheetos expanded to over 36 countries, they created special flavors for different places. For example, in China, they have Savory American Cream and Zesty Japanese Steak. In Japan, you could find Strawberry Cheetos in 2008! They even had Pepsi-flavored Cheetos in 2013 and Mountain Dew-flavored ones in 2014 in Japan.
In India, they sell Cheetos Whoosh, made with whole grain and vegetables. In Pakistan, Cheetos come in flavors like Vegetable, Cream N' Herb, and Ketchup.
In 2015, Frito-Lay released Sweetos in the U.S. These were cinnamon sugar-flavored and the first sweet Cheetos snack in 67 years!
More recently, in 2020, Frito-Lay started selling "Cheetos popcorn." They also introduced Cheetos mac n' cheese in August 2020.
Flamin' Hot Cheetos
Flamin' Hot Cheetos are a very popular spicy version of the snack. They were first tested in 1990 and became available everywhere in early 1992. Many people loved them, and they helped make Cheetos even more popular.
There have been different stories about how Flamin' Hot Cheetos were invented. One story is that Lynne Greenfeld, a product developer at Frito-Lay, led the project to create them. Another story comes from Richard Montañez, who started as a janitor at Frito-Lay. He said he came up with the idea for a spicy snack for Latino customers.
Both stories show how new ideas can come from different places within a company. The movie Flamin' Hot, released in 2023, tells Montañez's version of the story.
How Cheetos Are Made
Cheetos are made by mixing corn and water. The corn is ground into cornmeal. Then, nutrients are added to make it healthier.
This mixture is heated under pressure and pushed through a special shape. When it touches hot air, steam inside expands, giving Cheetos their unique crunchy texture. After being dried in an oven or fried, the Cheetos are tumbled with their cheesy flavorings.
This whole process takes about 19 minutes. Lab teams regularly check and taste each batch to make sure they are perfect.
Cheetos Marketing and Mascots
Early Mascots
The first Cheetos mascot was the Cheetos Mouse, who appeared in 1971. He was an animated mouse who spoke with a fancy accent. His slogans included "Chee-tos. Cheese that goes crunch!" and "Hail Chee-sar!". The Cheetos Mouse was used in ads until about 1979.
Chester Cheetah
The most famous Cheetos mascot is Chester Cheetah. He is a cool, smooth-voiced cartoon cheetah. Chester first appeared in commercials in 1986. He is known for his catchy slogans, like "The cheese that goes crunch!" and "It ain't easy bein' cheesy." Since 1997, his main slogan has been "Dangerously cheesy."
In 2003, Chester became a computer-animated character in the United States. He still appears in traditional cartoon form in some other countries.
Modern Advertising
Since 2008, Cheetos ads have also aimed at adults. In these ads, Chester Cheetah encourages people to use Cheetos in fun, sometimes mischievous, ways to solve problems.
In 2009, Cheetos even had a commercial during the Super Bowl. In this ad, Chester helps a customer get rid of a loud person by attracting birds with Cheetos. This shows the playful and sometimes sneaky side of Cheetos advertising.
In 2017, Frito-Lay opened a special pop-up restaurant in New York called "The Spotted Cheetah." All the dishes there were made with Cheetos! It was very popular and quickly sold out.
See also
