Marshmallows were first included in breakfast cereal in 1964 with the debut of Lucky Charms. There originally were four types of marshmallows in the cereal: pink hearts, yellow moons, orange stars and green clovers. Since then, many marshmallow shapes have come and gone in Lucky Charms, including green pine trees, an Eiffel tower, a pot of gold and blue diamonds.
More facts about marshmallows and cereal:
- There have been more than 60 types of breakfast cereal featuring marshmallows since Lucky Charms made its debut, including at least seven variations on Lucky Charms.
- The tiny marshmallow pieces in cereal are called marbits.
- Marbits typically are composed of about 50 percent sugar, 20 percent water and less than 1 percent flavoring. The other ingredients are mostly variants of sugar.