Fruit 'n Fibre
Encyclopedia
Breakfast cereal
A breakfast cereal is a food made from processed grains that is often, but not always, eaten with the first meal of the day. It is often eaten cold, usually mixed with milk , water, or yogurt, and sometimes fruit but sometimes eaten dry. Some cereals, such as oatmeal, may be served hot as porridge...
produced by Kellogg's and sold in various countries (including the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
). It consists of wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
flakes, dried fruit
Dried fruit
Dried fruit is fruit where the majority of the original water content has been removed either naturally, through sun drying, or through the use of specialized dryers or dehydrators. Dried fruit has a long tradition of use dating back to the fourth millennium BC in Mesopotamia, and is prized...
(sultana
Sultana
Sultana may refer to:* "Sultâna", is the term used for the mothers of the Ottoman emperors if and only if the aforementioned mother of an ottoman emperor was acquired the title of "Valide Sultân"....
s, raisin
Raisin
Raisins are dried grapes. They are produced in many regions of the world. Raisins may be eaten raw or used in cooking, baking and brewing...
s, coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
, banana
Banana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
, and apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
) and hazelnut
Hazelnut
A hazelnut is the nut of the hazel and is also known as a cob nut or filbert nut according to species. A cob is roughly spherical to oval, about 15–25 mm long and 10–15 mm in diameter, with an outer fibrous husk surrounding a smooth shell. A filbert is more elongated, being about twice...
s. Versions of this cereal are also produced by other companies under similar names, such as Fruit & Fibre. The Kellogg's version is also known as Optima Fruit & Fibre in some markets (this name was used in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
for a short period from 1997, but was eventually changed back).
One of Fruit 'n Fibre's main selling points is its relatively high level of dietary fibre
Dietary fiber
Dietary fiber, dietary fibre, or sometimes roughage is the indigestible portion of plant foods having two main components:* soluble fiber that is readily fermented in the colon into gases and physiologically active byproducts, and* insoluble fiber that is metabolically inert, absorbing water as it...
, although it does not contain as much of this as bran-based cereals (such as Bran Flakes or All-Bran
All-Bran
All-Bran is a very high-bran, high-fibre, wheat bran breakfast cereal manufactured by Kellogg's and marketed as an aid to digestive health.-History:It was introduced in 1916. It was sold in a red and green packet, similar to most Kellogg's cereals...
) normally do.
In the early-1990s, some television advertisements for the cereal featured a jingle with the chorus "Fruit & Fibre." The melody was identical to Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
's song "Love and Marriage," also known as the theme of the television show Married... with Children
Married... with Children
Married... with Children is an American surrealistic sitcom that aired for 11 seasons that featured a dysfunctional family living in Chicago, Illinois. The show, notable for being the first prime time television series to air on Fox, ran from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997. The series was created...
.
For the UK, however, the best-known advert for the cereal dates from the 1980s, featuring Ross Kemp
Ross Kemp
Ross James Kemp is a BAFTA award-winning British actor, author and journalist, who rose to prominence in the role of Grant Mitchell in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...
and the jingle
Jingle
A jingle is a short tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. The jingle contains one or more hooks and lyrics that explicitly promote the product being advertised, usually through the use of one or more advertising slogans. Ad buyers use jingles in radio and television...
"Apples, hazelnuts, bananas; raisins, coconuts, sultanas".
Post Cereals "Fruit & Fiber" (U.S.)
A cereal called "Fruit & Fiber" was produced in the United States by Post CerealsPost Cereals
Post Foods, LLC, also known as Post Cereals is a food company that was founded by C.W. Post in 1895 with the first Postum, a "cereal beverage," developed by Post in Battle Creek, Michigan. The first cereal, Grape-Nuts, was developed in 1897. Post has its headquarters in the Bank of America Plaza...
in two versions: Dates, Raisins & Walnuts; and Peaches, Raisins & Almonds. Circa 2004, the name was changed to Fruit & Bran; both versions were continued after the name change. Towards the end of 2006, production of Fruit & Bran cereal was discontinued by Post, with no version of Fruit & Fiber currently available in the U.S.
One advertising campaign featured the tagline, "Tastes so good, you'll forget the fiber," as cereal eaters in the commercial would try to remember the name of the brand.
Another campaign in the U.S. featured comedian Tim Conway insisting on pronouncing the word "fibre" phonetically so that it sounded something like "FEE - bray".