After 116 years in captivity, Barnum’s animal crackers have been set free.
The mighty animals depicted on the bright red and yellow box have always been shown locked behind the bars of a circus boxcar. But a spokesperson for Mondelez International, Nabisco’s parent company, said it was time for a change.
“To continue to make the brand relevant for years to come, we felt this was the right time for the next evolution in our design, now showing the animals in a natural habitat,” said Mondelez’s Kimberly Fontes.
The new design shows five animals walking shoulder to shoulder on the savanna. The new packaging also reads, “NEW LOOK. Same Great Taste,” as reassurance the classic cookie taste on the inside has remained the same.
Beginning with an April 2016 letter, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals urged Nabisco to make the change to its advertising and packaging, as public resistant to circuses grew because of allegations of animal abuse.
The letter read, “Given the egregious cruelty inherent in circuses that use animals and the public’s swelling opposition to the exploitation of animals used for entertainment, we urge Nabisco to update its packaging in order to show animals who are free to roam in their natural habitats.”
The change in packaging, PETA believes, is indicative of of a cultural shift.
“Big victories can come in small packages, and no matter where we look, we find new evidence that people are embracing compassion for animals like never before,” PETA said in a statement, saying they had been in discussions with Nabisco about the packaging redesign.
In addition to the liberated lions, tigers, and elephants, the new design is also more transparent about nutrition content than previous packaging. Consumers can now find single serving size information and saturated fat, sugar and sodium content.
Also see, Chain restaurants that use the most antibiotics in their meat.
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