Premium Plus

Premium Plus is a Canadian saltine-cracker brand associated with Nabisco and marketed in Canada under the Christie banner, formerly known as Mr. Christie. The same basic cracker is sold in the United States under the Premium name, commonly presented as Original Premium. The brand's history is generally traced to the introduction of Premium crackers in 1876, giving it a long association with packaged soda crackers and everyday pantry staples. The core product is a square, crisp soda cracker intended for eating on its own or accompanying soups, salads, spreads, cheese, and other foods. The Canadian range has included salted and unsalted versions as well as Five Grain and Whole Wheat varieties. Although the standard format is square, round versions have also been marketed at various times. Product packaging is designed for household use and commonly divides the crackers into several sealed sleeves within a box. Larger boxes containing eight or twelve sleeves, individually portioned packs containing two or four crackers, and occasional tin formats have also been used for food-service, institutional, or convenience applications. Premium Plus occupies a mainstream grocery position rather than a specialist or premium artisanal one. Its appeal is based on familiarity, versatility, portability, and use as a neutral accompaniment to meals. The Canadian branding differentiates it from the American presentation while maintaining the broader Premium cracker identity. Canadian packages have been described as red or brown, with brown packaging used for whole-wheat products; United States packages have typically used white boxes. These packaging conventions help distinguish variants and regional market presentations. The brand is part of the wider Nabisco portfolio. Nabisco products are owned by Mondelēz International, while Christie is the Canadian banner under which a number of Nabisco products have historically been marketed. The available reference material does not identify a separate corporate entity established specifically for Premium Plus, nor does it provide a standalone headquarters, founder, public listing, or dedicated current website for the brand. Premium crackers attracted public criticism in 1989 when Omaha businessman Phil Sokolof placed newspaper advertisements alleging that Nabisco products contained unhealthy saturated fats. At that time, Nabisco saltine crackers still used lard, a rendered animal fat. The company subsequently changed the fat used in the crackers during the 1990s to a vegetable oil, according to the referenced account. This episode is a documented product-formulation controversy connected to the broader Premium saltine line rather than evidence of a separate Premium Plus corporate scandal. Today, Premium Plus remains an active Canadian-facing cracker brand with a portfolio centered on salted, unsalted, multigrain, and whole-wheat soda crackers. Detailed current sales, ownership structure at the individual brand level, executive appointments, financial performance, and official brand web addresses are not identified in the supplied reference material.

Premium Plus is the Canadian-market identity of Nabisco's Premium saltine cracker line. The history of the Canadian product is therefore tied to the broader Premium cracker brand rather than to a separately documented company. The crackers were first introduced in 1876, establishing a long-running packaged-food product centered on the soda-cracker format. In the United States, the line has been marketed as Premium or Original Premium, while Canada uses the Premium Plus name and the Christie banner. Christie was formerly identified as Mr. Christie, reflecting the Canadian branding history of Nabisco products. The product's basic role has remained consistent: a dry, crisp, relatively neutral cracker suitable for eating with soups, salads, cheese, spreads, and other foods. Its square shape became the standard visual and physical format, although round versions have also appeared in the market. The brand's longevity reflects the durability of the saltine category, in which convenience, shelf stability, and broad meal compatibility are central selling attributes. Premium Plus has been offered in several varieties. The referenced product range includes Unsalted, also described as Original; Salted; Five Grain; and Whole Wheat. Packaging has been adapted for different consumption occasions. Household boxes commonly contain four individually wrapped sleeves, while larger formats with eight or twelve sleeves have also been available. Individually portioned packs containing two or four crackers have been used frequently in restaurants and other food-service settings. Tin packaging has appeared occasionally. Canadian packaging has been described as red or brown, with brown boxes used for whole-wheat varieties, whereas United States boxes have typically been white. A notable episode in the brand's documented history occurred in 1989. Phil Sokolof, an Omaha millionaire and public health campaigner, placed advertisements in the Los Angeles Times accusing Nabisco of using unhealthy saturated fats in its products. The controversy focused on the presence of lard in Nabisco saltine crackers. Lard is a rendered animal fat, and its use was relevant both to saturated-fat concerns and to consumers who preferred vegetarian-friendly formulations. The referenced history states that Nabisco later moved to vegetable oil in the 1990s. This was a formulation change affecting the broader Nabisco saltine line and is relevant to Premium and Premium Plus because of their shared product identity. The brand's corporate context has changed as the Nabisco business has passed into larger food-company ownership. Premium Plus is associated with Nabisco and is sold in Canada through the Christie brand structure. Nabisco is part of Mondelēz International. The supplied sources do not provide a distinct founding founder, stand-alone headquarters, public-company listing, dedicated executive team, detailed financial disclosures, or a separate current website for Premium Plus. Consequently, the brand is best understood as a regional product name within a multinational packaged-food portfolio, rather than as an independently incorporated Canadian company. In its present form, Premium Plus continues to represent a familiar Canadian saltine offering. Its principal differentiation is regional branding combined with a broad set of everyday cracker formats and variants. The available material does not establish a precise current distribution footprint beyond Canada and the related United States Premium market, nor does it document recent product launches or major advertising programs.

• 1990

  Vegetable-oil reformulation period

  [1]Premium Plusen.wikipedia.org

  During the 1990s, Nabisco changed the fat used in its saltine crackers from lard to vegetable oil.

• 1989

  Saturated-fat advertising controversy

  [1]Premium Plusen.wikipedia.org

  Phil Sokolof published advertisements criticizing Nabisco products, including saltine crackers that still used lard at the time.

• 1876

  Introduction of Premium crackers

  [1]Premium Plusen.wikipedia.org

  The Premium saltine cracker line was first introduced, forming the historical foundation for the Premium Plus name used in Canada.

A mainstream, versatile Canadian pantry cracker brand focused on familiar soda crackers for meals, snacks, soups, and food-service use.

• Saltine crackers

  Premium Plus Salted

  The standard salted soda-cracker offering in the Canadian Premium Plus range. It is a crisp, square cracker designed for everyday snacking and for serving with soups, salads, cheese, spreads, and other foods. Household packaging commonly uses multiple sealed sleeves, while portioned formats support restaurant and food-service use.

• Unsalted soda crackers

  Premium Plus Unsalted

  The unsalted or Original variant provides the basic Premium soda-cracker format without the salted surface associated with the standard version. Its relatively neutral flavor makes it suitable for pairing with savory toppings, serving alongside meals, or using in food preparation.

• Multigrain crackers

  Premium Plus Five Grain

  The Five Grain variety extends the core saltine range with a multigrain formulation. It retains the brand's role as an everyday accompaniment while offering an alternative to the standard salted or unsalted cracker formats.

• Whole-wheat crackers

  Premium Plus Whole Wheat

  The Whole Wheat variety provides a wheat-based alternative within the Premium Plus line. It has been associated with brown Canadian packaging and is positioned as another everyday cracker option for snacks and meal accompaniment.

• 1989

  Saturated-fat and lard controversy

  Phil Sokolof ran advertisements accusing Nabisco of using unhealthy saturated fats in its products. Nabisco saltine crackers still contained lard at the time. The broader product line later moved to vegetable oil during the 1990s.

  Source

Read more

• Regional branding under the Christie nameStrategy

  Background

  The Premium cracker line uses different market identities: Premium Plus under the Christie banner in Canada and Premium or Original Premium in the United States.

  Action taken

  Nabisco maintained a Canadian Premium Plus identity rather than using the same principal product name as in the United States.

  Aftermath

  The regional naming structure remains the main distinction between the Canadian Premium Plus presentation and the United States Premium presentation.

  Source

• Change from lard to vegetable oilOther

  Background

  The use of lard in Nabisco saltine crackers became a public issue because of saturated-fat concerns and the ingredient's animal origin.

  Action taken

  Nabisco changed the fat used in its saltine crackers to vegetable oil during the 1990s.

  Aftermath

  The reformulation made the product more suitable for consumers seeking a vegetarian-friendly alternative to crackers made with lard.

  Source

• Nabisco changes fat used in saltine crackers[1]Premium Plusen.wikipedia.org

  Product generation · Other

  During the 1990s, Nabisco changed the fat used in its saltine crackers from lard to a vegetable oil, making the formulation more suitable for consumers seeking a vegetarian-friendly product.

1. 1Premium Plusen.wikipedia.org