Cheez-It

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Cheez-It crackers and promotional packaging (2005)

Cheez-It crackers are an American snack food manufactured by the Kellogg Company. They are roughly 26 by 24 mm (1.0 by 0.95 inch) crackers made with wheat flour, vegetable oil, sharp yellow cheese, salt, and spices. There are a variety of related Cheez-It products, including white cheddar, parmesan and garlic, cheddar-jack, reduced fat, Party Mix, Hot & Spicy (made with Tabasco), and a larger cracker more suitable for garnishing or dipping. They are similar to Kraft Cheese Nips, which is often held in disfavor by fans of the former (and vice-versa).

A typical Cheez-It cracker, shown near actual size on a 100 ppi monitor

According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office trademark records, the first "Cheez-It" Cheese Crackers were sold by Green & Green Company of Dayton, Ohio in May of 1921. After the stock market crash, The Green & Green Company was acquired by The Sunshine Biscuit Company, founded in 1902 as the Loose-Wiles Biscuit Company. The Keebler Company acquired Sunshine in 1996, and Keebler was in turn acquired by Kellogg in 2001. Cheez-It crackers are still sold under the Sunshine label.

Cheez-It crackers have a hole in the middle, sometimes claimed to allow them to bake more evenly (as to which it has no discernible effect), but in fact originally designed to allow them to be strung on thread.^{[citation needed]}

A former advertising slogan was "Get your own box," which was found on the backs of most boxes. One side also contained the so-called "Anatomy of a Cheez-It." In mid 2007, the boxes were changed to show a picture of a large wedge of cheese labeled "Actual Taste," while a Cheez-It is shown propping it up, labeled "Actual Size." The new slogan in place of "Get Your Own Box" is "The Big Cheese", with Jim Cummings as the spokesperson of the television commercials for it. Small 1.5oz. Cheez-It bags make the snack a popular selection in vending machines.