Sunnyboy facts for kids

The Sunnyboy was a super popular Australian treat! It was a flavoured ice block, kind of like a frozen juice pop. It was famous for its unique triangle shape, called a tetra-pak. You could buy them one by one or in packs. Sunnyboys were super popular until the early 1990s. They were cheap and easy to find in school tuckshops, discount stores, and milk bars all over Australia.

Even a famous Australian rock band, called Sunnyboys, was named after this ice block! They chose the name to sound 'bright, happy, young, and fun'.

What Flavours Were There?

Sunnyboys came in fun, flavour-related names. The main ones were Orange Explosion, Razz Raspberry, Zap Lime, and Glug Cola. For a short time in the 1970s, there was a pineapple flavour called 'Pow'. Later, it was renamed 'Big Daddy'. Another flavour was 'Hawaiian Punch'. In 1996, a new Buzz Blackcurrant flavour was also added.

How Was the Packaging?

The unique triangle packaging made eating a Sunnyboy a bit of an adventure! It could sometimes take a whole school lunch break to finish one. It was also a bit tricky to open. You had to cut the tetra-pak at just the right angle. Because of their shape, they were also easy to drop! In 1987, the triangle shape was changed a little to make it easier to hold.

Sunnyboys also had a cool instant-win competition. About one in five ice blocks had a special message. If you found it, you won another free Sunnyboy! People often called this winning a "free".

Where Could You Find Them?

In 1991, a company called National Foods bought the Sunnyboy brand. After this, it became harder to find Sunnyboys. But you could still get them in orange, raspberry, and cola flavours.

Sunnyboys were sometimes featured in showbags at the Sydney Royal Easter Show. For example, in 1998 and 1999, you could find them in the "Agro's drink and freezies" showbag. There was even a special "Sunnyboy showbag" in 1999 and 2004! Even though they were harder to find, showbags were a good way to get them.

Other Sunnyboy Products

The Sunnyboy brand wasn't just about ice blocks! In 1996, they launched Sunnyboy Jelly. This was a new kind of jelly that you could eat straight from the shelf. You could also chill it in the fridge. The jelly came in Glug Cola, Ozzie Orange, Razz Raspberry, and Zap Lime flavours. The original ice block was then called "Sunnyboy Ice" to tell them apart.

In 2006, a Sunnyboy cordial drink was released. Cordial is a concentrated drink you mix with water. It came in eight different flavours. These included lemon, apple berry, mango mandarin, and orange.

Sunnyboys in the News

Sunnyboys were sometimes mentioned in the news or by famous people. In 2014, actor William McInnes talked about Sunnyboys. He said they brought back happy memories for many Australians. That same year, radio presenter Richard Glover called Sunnyboys one of the "unsung superfood heroes of the 70s."

In 2016, a journalist named Kylie Northover noticed something. Sunnyboys were no longer being sold at public swimming pools in Melbourne.

Why Did They Stop Being Made?

In 1996, the company tried to make the Sunnyboy brand popular again. They launched new products like Sunnyboy Jelly. They thought that new ideas would help sell more ice blocks.

However, in September 2016, the company that made Sunnyboys, The Daily Juice Co., made an announcement. They said they would stop making Sunnyboys. This was because fewer people were buying them over the years. Some fans even started an online petition to keep them! But it didn't get enough signatures.

A business magazine called Smart Company wrote about Sunnyboys. They said that even though people complained online when Sunnyboys stopped, these people weren't always the main buyers. Often, their sadness was more about good memories than buying the product regularly.