Sweet Cheetos? You bet! Say hello to Sweetos

Posted: Jan 21, 2015 / 03:26 PM MST

Updated: Jan 21, 2015 / 04:34 PM MST

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

Snackers soon will have an excuse to turn their fingers cinnamon brown instead of cheesy orange.

According to USA Today, Frito-Lay’s Cheetos brand will roll out Cheetos Sweetos in late February. It is described as a cinnamon, sugar puff snack. Sweetos is the first sweet snack that Cheetos has cranked out in the brand’s 67-year history. The limited-time offering follows a successful 2013 holiday launch of a sweet snack by sister brand Lays, with Lays Wavy Potato Chips Dipped in Milk Chocolate.

For years, various Frito-Lay salty snack brands have tested unusual offerings and sweet flavors outside the U.S. market, but now the brand seems more willing to try oddball snacks inside the USA, too. Last summer, to much fanfare, 7-Eleven stores domestically rolled out Loaded Doritos — warm, triangular-shaped mozzarella sticks — coated and pan-fried with a signature Doritos taste.

“This is not a short-term strategy,” says Jeff Klein, vice president of brand marketing for Frito-Lay North America. “We are looking for growth outside of the cheese puff segment.”

A 7-ounce bag of Sweetos, dusted in brown speckles, will fetch $3.49. Frito-Lay is looking into other sweet Cheetos flavor options, but Klein declined to name or describe them for competitive reasons.