NEW FLASH!! - McVities biscuits - recipe changed back in 2020

[High Voltage]

Granted, I'm obviously not one of the target demographic of McVities biscuits consumers having only just purchased a packet last week

But they've bloody well changed the recipe to such an extent that most of the packet ended up in the food recycling bin

To me, McVities Digestive biscuits had a noticeable sweet / salty thing going on, along with actual grains of "something" - no longer biscuit fans - the digestive biscuit, along with 6 others have had their recipe changed . . . and not for the better, if my experience of the digestive is anything to go by

The list of "new and improved" biscuits here:-

• Original Digestives
• Rich Tea
• Chocolate Digestives
• Caramel Digestives
• Original Hobnobs
• Chocolate hobnobs
• Ginger Nuts

Sneaked in under the cover of Covid, another "benefit" of leaving the EU, a cynical accountants cost cutting exercise disguised as a "health improvement" - bearing in mind that the Original Digestives will now "boast" 9% less sugar and 5% less salt, down at 15.16g of sugar having been at 16.6g per 100g. Public Health England’s target is 26.2g of sugar per 100g - so the original biscuits were already well below the "target" - methinks that "something is rotten in the state of McVities"

So there's another brand I'll not be bothering with . . . and the fact that it's taken me TWO FUCKING YEARS for this to even register will obviously have the McVitie Mandarins quaking behind their abaci

 

[marty21]

How does this impact on the dunking qualities of some of these biscuits? Are Rich Tea still the most dunkable?

 

[High Voltage]

Given that they've been on sale for the last two years, have you noticed any appreciable difference?

With the digestives I noticed that something was awry the second I opened the packet, they just looked "wrong", with the first bite confirming my worst fears

 

[gentlegreen]

Speaking as a quasi-"vegan" with a weight problem who will hopefully never eat a shop biscuit again - especially if I manage to make the move to France ..., they probably tasted better as a child in the 60s / 70s when doubtless they were made with lard ...

 

[pogofish]

They changed the recipe back in the 1990s, when they stopped using processed Sandeel oil. The quality never recovered from that one either.

 

[gentlegreen]

In the 60s, before supermarkets, my parents used to buy broken biscuits loose at the Baker's !

 

[StoneRoad]

I've just had the unpleasant experience of attempting to consume some own-label "low-sugar" ginger nuts.
[picked as substitute on the grocery order this week]

Absolutely dire ! Quite disgusting and nothing like the real deal.

I recall that as a consequence of flooding in Carlisle, a "few" years ago [2005,2009,2015], MacVities were unable to produce Ginger Nuts - and several other ranges - for anyone. There was a serious shortage for weeks, while they replaced / cleaned and dried out the equipment on their ground floor of their city centre site.
Months later - 2016 - I was collecting another hire care from a place nearby and was able to smell the wonderful scent of cooking ginger nuts once again ...

e2a link

Carr's - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[farmerbarleymow]

So there's another brand I'll not be bothering with

Dog biscuits are always a good standby - good for your teeth too.

 

[Pickman's model]

Dog biscuits are always a good standby - good for your teeth too.

not to mention your coat

 

[miss direct]

I had a degusto box this month, and it had fully coated chocolate digestives. They were rather nice.

 

[killer b]

I made my own last summer and they were lush.

this recipe iirc How to cook the perfect digestive biscuit

 

[JimW]

We've been living a lie for two whole years You can actually buy them here now, should check out where they're made. Somewhere SE Asia under licence I'd guess

 

[skyscraper101]

I knew they had been fucking around with the recipe. They are definitely less good than they used to be.

McVities to change recipe of most popular biscuits including Hobnobs

CONNOISSEURS of the great British biscuit may have trouble digesting the fact they have been hobnobbing with rather different products of late.

www.express.co.uk

McVitie’s owner Pladis said the new recipes were “achieved through careful rebalancing of ingredients to reduce sugar and salt in order to get below, or as close, to Public Health England’s target while maintaining the distinctive taste”.

It said the changes had been tested on hundreds of customers, including so-called McVitie ‘super-fans’ to ensure the reduction in sugar goes unnoticed.

What a swizz

 

[Boudicca]

I did some extensive research on digestives during lockdown (well, I ate a lot of them) and can recommend the M&S ones.

 

[The39thStep]

In the 60s, before supermarkets, my parents used to buy broken biscuits loose at the Baker's !

Woolworths used to do broken biscuits well into the 70s

 

[marty21]

Given that they've been on sale for the last two years, have you noticed any appreciable difference?

With the digestives I noticed that something was awry the second I opened the packet, they just looked "wrong", with the first bite confirming my worst fears

I'm not a big dunker tbf , but Mrs21 still enjoys dunking a Rich Tea....

 

[UrbaneFox]

I've just had the unpleasant experience of attempting to consume some own-label "low-sugar" ginger nuts.
[picked as substitute on the grocery order this week]

Absolutely dire ! Quite disgusting and nothing like the real deal.

Substitutes on the grocery order are a neglected subject on Urban 75. I think I may have to start a new thread.

 

[StoneRoad]

Substitutes on the grocery order are a neglected subject on Urban 75. I think I may have to start a new thread.

Go on then, I've a few tales from the past few months !

 

[UrbaneFox]

Go on then, I've a few tales from the past few months !

Substitutes on the grocery order. List your triumphs and disappointments.

I have just received a delivery from Waitrose, and the substitutions were disappointing, but not so appalling that I rejected them. As follows: Instead of a red cabbage they sent a white Duchy cabbage. Not only has this foiled my spiced red cabbage plans, but it is a small one, and I would not...

www.urban75.net

 

[friedaweed]

I made my own last summer and they were lush.

this recipe iirc How to cook the perfect digestive biscuit

Nice one. Going to try that today.

 

[High Voltage]

I knew they had been fucking around with the recipe. They are definitely less good than they used to be.

McVities to change recipe of most popular biscuits including Hobnobs

CONNOISSEURS of the great British biscuit may have trouble digesting the fact they have been hobnobbing with rather different products of late.

www.express.co.uk

What a swizz

Well the so called "super fans" must have defective taste buds if they can't tell the difference of the new recipe to the originals

 

[platinumsage]

My dad used to cut out and keep ingredients lists from food packaging for the purpose of spotting sneaky changes, so he'd have been on to them straight away.

 

[SpookyFrank]

I hope Rich Tea biscuits still have that wonderful plasterboard taste we all know and love.

 

[High Voltage]

My dad used to cut out and keep ingredients lists from food packaging for the purpose of spotting sneaky changes, so he'd have been on to them straight away.

I have just been informed, quite forcibly, by Mrs Voltz that I'm not allowed to do this as my new hobby

 

[High Voltage]

I hope Rich Tea biscuits still have that wonderful plasterboard taste we all know and love.

They've been changed for two years now, so if you've not noticed then assume the new recipe passes muster

 

[Carvaged]

McVities/United Biscuits was bought out by Yildiz in 2014. It's now just a corporate brand, much like Cadbury (owner Mondelez), and they make regular recipe changes to make their products taste 'better' (cheaper).

 

[DaveCinzano]

I have just been informed, quite forcibly, by Mrs Voltz that I'm not allowed to do this as my new hobby

Take photos of products on the shelf, file, folder, spreadsheet

 

[Epona]

We got some dark chocolate digestives recently, first time in ages - and it was more like dark chocolate rich teas, even the texture of the biscuit wasn't like it used to be. Bland cardboard instead of sweet salty goodness topped with chocolate

 

[Sprocket.]

I have always found the Towergate range of biscuits from Lidl are quite nice.

 

[A380]

But are Nice biscuits still pronounced 'Nice' or 'Nice'? I always thought they were pronounced 'Nice', but someone said they should be pronounced 'Nice'.