Did You Know Oreos Are A Knockoff Version Of Hydrox Cookies?

All cookies are great, if we are being honest. However, there is just something about an Oreo that we cannot deny. While we’re far too familiar with how the classic Oreo pairs with milk, there’s a lot about Oreos that we don’t know.

Thankfully, Tom Blank with Weird History Food is here with a video to provide a breakdown of Oreos and their history.

We have never had more fun learning about the life and times of the Oreo. When it comes to their rich history, we are absolutely clueless….until now. There is so much about the Oreo that we did not know, that is for sure.

Hydrox actually existed before the Oreo did. We always assumed that the Hydrox cookie was an Oreo knockoff. In reality, the opposite is true and we were today years old when we learned this.

“The company’s true defining moment arrived in 1912 when it introduced the world to the Oreo …. In many ways, it’s history’s finest invention. It was so genius, you can’t help but wonder how they got the idea for it. And it turns out, they didn’t. They stole it from a competitor. In 1908, the Loose-Wiles Biscuit Company released the Hydrox, a cookie that is all but identical to an Oreo,” Tom shares in the video.

The Oreo got off to a slow start but soon pulled ahead. Hydrox could not trademark its name because it was a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen, which did not help their cause. The scientific connotation that the name evoked was not useful, either. It made people think of cleaning products instead of cookies, which is the last thing that you want.

“Over time, Hydrox became attached to all sorts of products, which made the name sound generic to the public. Even worse, chemical companies began using it on substances that you absolutely should not dunk into a glass of milk…,” Tom elaborates.

If you would like to learn more about the intriguing history of the Oreo cookie, please be sure to check this one out: