I know it's garbage (from a health perspective), but I still eat a box of Kraft Mac n Cheese periodically. It's absolutely gone down hill. I couldn't articulate how without spending more time than it's worth thinking about it. I miss how much I enjoyed it fifteen years ago. It was a delicious treat.
It's garbage from a taste perspective too. Kraft mac and cheese is truly disgusting stuff; any real mac and cheese recipe will get you 10x the flavor for only 2x the effort.
A real mac and cheese recipe where you make a bechamel sauce and mix in grated cheese is way more than 2x the effort, time and cleanup of the boxed stuff.
This read like an ad to me. I don’t think anyone’s buying mac n cheese for the health benefits, and if anything Kraft is selling less because it doesn’t taste as good anymore. A return to the original recipe would win me back, and I’m willing to bet I’m not alone.
Nuclear Orange Dust (and not the Cheetoh dust, the og mac dust) and bigger fatter noodles (that late 90s skinnier noodles trash is what ruined it for me, texture ruined, etc...)
But Annies wins the flavor contest (at least with the cheese sauce pouch, not the Kraft dust kind)...
Annie's is a close second in the dry-packet, to Goodles (which cook slightly faster, and are gluten-free). Both are winners.
My tip: Immediately after draining, I mix in a beaten raw egg to coat the noodles and make them a tad creamier in mouthfeel - regardless of brand. The noodle heat soft-cooks the egg.
> A return to the original recipe would win me back
Ah yes, those "new and improved" recipes which almost invariably are about improving production costs and not improving taste.
I've started shopping by ingredients label. If I see more than a few ingredients I'm gonna pay attention, if it's multiple lines of weird names I'm just putting it back.
However that presumes the companies are honest about what they put in there. I know from a close friend that's not always the case (and yes I avoid that brand).
> A return to the original recipe would win me back, and I’m willing to bet I’m not alone.
People don't notice the gradual enshittification ... until they do. The problem is that, at that point, they're not just going to switch; they are now angry at your brand and getting them back is going to be impossible.
It sucks in Canada too. When my family wants a KD fix, we get the Annie's blue box. It tastes better and doesn't have the off-putting colour. It's basically like KD used to be.
This is one of those foods in my world which just kind of “exists” without consideration that it’s actually eaten by some people as a preference. Other candidates include: Campbells tomato soup, pork rinds, and ranch dip.
> Kraft mac and cheese, first sold in 1937 for 19 cents a box, was the creation of Chicago cheese monger James L. Kraft, who got his start selling cheese from a horse-drawn wagon. Marketed as a meal for four [...]
That's $4.37 per box in November of 2025 dollars, according to the US BLS Inflation Calculator, for a box that was said to serve 4 -- or ~$1.09 modern dollars per serving.
A modern box of Kraft Mac and Cheese contains 7.25oz, and serves 3.5 [WTF?] people, and costs ~$1.24, or ~$0.35 modern dollars per serving.
Maybe if they weren't seeking the bottom dollar at every possible expense, they'd have held onto their sales.
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[ 2.5 ms ] story [ 45.4 ms ] threadBut Annies wins the flavor contest (at least with the cheese sauce pouch, not the Kraft dust kind)...
My tip: Immediately after draining, I mix in a beaten raw egg to coat the noodles and make them a tad creamier in mouthfeel - regardless of brand. The noodle heat soft-cooks the egg.
Ah yes, those "new and improved" recipes which almost invariably are about improving production costs and not improving taste.
I've started shopping by ingredients label. If I see more than a few ingredients I'm gonna pay attention, if it's multiple lines of weird names I'm just putting it back.
However that presumes the companies are honest about what they put in there. I know from a close friend that's not always the case (and yes I avoid that brand).
People don't notice the gradual enshittification ... until they do. The problem is that, at that point, they're not just going to switch; they are now angry at your brand and getting them back is going to be impossible.
That's $4.37 per box in November of 2025 dollars, according to the US BLS Inflation Calculator, for a box that was said to serve 4 -- or ~$1.09 modern dollars per serving.
A modern box of Kraft Mac and Cheese contains 7.25oz, and serves 3.5 [WTF?] people, and costs ~$1.24, or ~$0.35 modern dollars per serving.
Maybe if they weren't seeking the bottom dollar at every possible expense, they'd have held onto their sales.
https://m.youtube.com/shorts/eieSNW5pK8w