I really hate seeing this on my favourite foods because almost certainly it means I won't like it so much. Sure it may be more healthy, reduced salt, reduced fat blah blah blah but I like what I like so just leave it alone!

It depends. If the recipe more or less tastes the same but is better for you then I would prefer that new recipe.

Generally when I think of "new and improved recipe" I don't expect it to taste any different.

I think it means that they have reduced the pack/jar/box size without reducing the price.

With this new ability to taste (now that I've quit smoking) I can't wait to try some of these New and Improved foods.
To be honest, I'm really excited about just being able to taste at all!

When Frito Lay switched their Doritos to "New and improved" I immediately had to try them and could tell it was quite an obvious cost reduced formula. I sent them a nasty gram and a month or two later I noticed they were quietly switched back. I'm guessing I wasn't the only one to complain.
I even offered to help them with cost reductions while maintaining the current flavor (It's part of what I do when I'm not playing with puzzles)

Our marketing department hates "new and improved". If it's 'new' how can it be improved?


-d

Agreed with Darryl. New and Improved is just... gah. If it's improved, it must not be new since there must have been something before it. In terms of foods, I'd rather see separate flavors, "Classic" and a name describing the actual taste in food. I've never really been a fan of Doritos, but I can bring in a different example. My dad used to be a top guy in the Silk Soymilk product. Completely organic soybean milk made completely with green energy and recycled materials, and the taste and health benefits are just amazing and... Back to the point, when Dean Foods bought the Silk Soymilk, those organic labels and green habits went away, and the only hint was: "New and Improved". I would certainly not call that improvement, and the product has been around for many years before so it can't be new.

Remember "New Coke"? Big flop right there.

Usually companies have no incentive to change the recipe on a product to TASTE better, because if something like coke is already selling billions of cans then it is obvious that nothing needs to be changed. I agree that "new and improved" is just a way to cover-up a new cost-reducing recipe.

Not really sure what this has to do with puzzles though... Pretty off-topic

What about retooling cubes to be cheaper? I'm sure it's been done before.

This always bugged me.

The new artificial colour-free Smarties are an example of a company trying to improve a product, but not for more money... The problem is, I hate them now...

You are actually more off topic than me since you mentioned something on topic in the Off Topic forum.

The only reason anything should be changed is if enough people complain about it or the creator is unhappy with the first results. In the case of the Doritos, it was obviously a cost saving move, which is ridiuculous. If they were still profitting, and people were happy, why change anything.

If my buddy tried to mess with his chocolate chip cookie recipe (which is incredible, I make him make a big batch of dough for me to put in the fridge and make cookies as I please) I'd be pretty pissed because he didn't need to change anything to "improve" his product

You, more so, for discussing the on-topic "off-topic" topic in the off-topic forum.

even more on topic, I foresee this tangent going in someone's signature.

Done. Although some of it had to be paraphrased for the sake of the 255 character limit.

Sometimes, a change in recipe can be a welcome improvement. I'm 30 years old now, and for the past decade, my tastes have slowly been changing such that healthier food is beginning to become more appetizing than unhealthy food. Any change in diet that reflects less sodium/fat or replaces processed carbs (i.e. white sugar, high fructose corn syrup) with natural carbs (i.e. berries, fresh fruit) is a welcome change to me. I also much prefer whole grain or wheat instead of white bread.

For years, I couldn't eat Dominoes Pizza because some secret ingredient in their sauce was giving me intestinal discomfort. Once when I was 19, I ate a whole thin crust pizza by myself and I had problems for a whole week. Funny thing was, Dominoes was the only Pizza chain whose pizza did this to me. I could eat anywhere else, whether a local pizza shop or nationwide brand, and be fine.

Recently, they did a new add campaign announcing their newer fresher sauce came from sun-ripened tomatoes. It does taste better now and I can eat their pizza again without having any of the previous digestive issues. I still much prefer Johny's pizza though (it's a regional chain in the Southern US).

I try to eat healthier and on a tighter budget nowadays, so I generally avoid restaurant pizza. When you buy a $5 pizza from the frozen foods section of the grocery store that you can bake in your own oven, and pile on all the extra toppings you want at little extra cost, you get a great hot fresh pizza with much less fat and grease than the $20 you would have spent ordering out.

Yes but my extra toppings include loads more cheese and bacon.