Pantry Item:Kranky: corn flakes with chocolate coating
Produced by: Ricolino
Location: Mexico
I came across Kranky while living in Mexico in 1999. This is the first item that I am sharing from my pantry because Kranky opened my eyes to the importance of paying attention to the details of a culture while traveling. Junk food and candy are excellent pulse points of a nation and Kranky is a primary colored banner from the people of Mexico reading: Ya Basta! (enough!)
It should be no surprise that Mexico would offer the world Kranky. Corn and chocolate have been ancient elements of the Mesoamerican diet for centuries. Corn in the form of tortillas and atole was the mainstay of peasant life. The Aztec commoner would escape this corn-laden diet during special occasions by eating tamales, which comprised of steamed cornmeal wrapped in corn husks. Chocolate was at the other end of the spectrum. The Maya called it “Food of the Gods” and the cacao seeds were used as money. So noblemen wishing to impress others with their wealth would essentially drink their money in the form of hot coco. Montezuma continued this tradition as emperor of the Aztecs. He was known to drink 50 cups of coco a day in disposable golden shot glasses. He even ordered the first chocolate Slurpee by forcing runners up to snow-capped mountains and back in a single day. So Ricolino’s combination of corn flakes and chocolate in Kranky is inherently Mexican but also revolutionary since it is now easily accessible to all.
The English use of Kranky means "not satisfied" but why would you want to name your snack food as being anything but satisfying? Perhaps it is an attempt to make you know that when you are feeling cranky that this snack will be the answer. Or through the lens of the the Globefodder we will learn that it means so much more!
Kranky is a showcase of socialist symbolism in a country with 40% poverty level and phenomenally wealthy drug cartels. Inside the bag there are no class distinctions. The corn and the chocolate are one. Or perhaps this is a cleverly crafted social salve. You see, the repression of the lower classes is represented because the chocolate (i.e. bourgeoisie) is smothering the corn (i.e. proletariat). This upholds the current status of widespread division among the classes. But in good form, even though the corn cannot be seen it will be heard with each crunch while both are being broken down into one. Thus the very act of working through a bag of Kranky allows a Mexican in poverty to "stick it to the man" by wiping out such class distinctions in one satisfying crunch. While the makers of Kranky are no doubt making a handsome profit they are also offering a symbolic outlet for social discontent which is still lingering since the ideals of the leftist Mexican intelligentsia were widely touted during the rise of communism in the early 20th century.
The graphic artists at Ricolino knew that they needed to design a bag that would sell a snack and not follow the political tradition of Mexican leftist muralists. While Diego Rivera's work is highly regarded in Mexico, his political views were not throughout the world. When Nelson Rockefeller invited Rivera to paint a mural inside Rockefeller Center it was brought to a halt once Lenin’s face was painted in the background. Rivera would not compromise his communist ideals and was forced to leave while workers took his mural down. Mexico is still a hotbed of leftist activity even to this day. That is why we still see the emergence of freedom fighters in Southern Mexico like the Zapatistas crying “Ya Basta” and also chocolate covered corn flakes like Kranky. But Kranky is now poised to be sold throughout the world since its message of economic equality is not overt (like Rivera's) and this will lead to huge profits!
How do they taste? Not too different than you would expect. Kranky is basicaly chocolate covered Corn Flakes. The nice thing is that they are very crunchy so you don't have to suffer through the soggy flakes at the bottom of the bowl. Thumbs up on this one!
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