Green Onion Chex: History and Key Facts

Green Onion Chex (Korean: 첵스 파맛), commonly known as Pa-mat Chex, was a limited-edition green onion-flavored cereal released by Nongshim in South Korea on July 1, 2020. It originated from an "election" event held in 2004 to promote the mascots of Chex cereal. In the event, Cheki, a chocolate-colored Chex-shaped mascot, and Chaka, a green Chex character and opposing candidate, promised to release milk chocolate-flavored and green onion-flavored cereals, respectively. Contrary to the company's intentions, internet users turned the event into a prank and gave the green onion-flavored candidate more votes. Nongshim Kellogg later invalidated votes it claimed had been cast fraudulently using macros and declared Cheki the winner. However, the incident became an Internet meme as a rigged election, and internet users continued to demand the release of Green Onion Chex.

In response to these demands, Nongshim Kellogg had been researching Green Onion Chex since 2004. In June 2020, the company announced that it would release a limited-edition Chex cereal flavored with green onions, including green onions grown in Yeoju. In a promotional video released before the launch, trot singer Tae Jin-ah appeared singing a parody version of his song "Mian Mianhae". The promotion also used several internet memes, including the coffin dance meme and a "GG" ("Good Game") declaration at the end of the video using the spelling of Kellogg's.

Characteristics of Green Onion Chex included the "green onion flavor" that the product was intended to reproduce from the development stage, a "sweet and salty" taste, and the aroma of green onions. Members of a pre-release tasting group tried Green Onion Chex with various foods, ranging from dairy products such as Milk to dishes such as Seolleongtang and Tteokbokki. People who tried Green Onion Chex generally commented that the cereal did not pair particularly well with milk.

After the release of Green Onion Chex 16 years after the original event, internet users described it as a "victory for Democracy". The marketing campaign for Green Onion Chex also received positive reviews from several media outlets. On November 12, 2020, Nongshim Kellogg won the "Best YouTube New Brand Launch" category at the 2020 YouTube Works Awards, hosted by Google, for Green Onion Chex. Production of the cereal was discontinued in July 2021.

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