By Mike Hughlett

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Spam Snacks, we hardly knew ye.

Last fall, Hormel Foods introduced a dried, bite-sized version of its classic canned pork, hoping to capitalize on a boom in meat snacks. Despite the nation’s long-standing love of Spam, the snack idea flopped.

Spam Snacks, which come in single servings, will disappear from store shelves by summer’s end.

“The decision to discontinue Spam snacks came following post-launch review of consumer and sales metrics, which didn’t meet our initial expectations,” Hormel said in a statement.

Austin-based Hormel used a “proprietary dried meat technology” to create Spam Snacks, which come in “classic,” bacon and teriyaki varieties. Hormel debuted Spam Snacks in Spam’s strongest markets: Hawaii, the West Coast and the Southeast. Some national retailers have also carried it.

Hormel last fall also launched a peanut butter snack called “Skippy P.B. Bites,” essentially peanut butter balls. The P.B. Bites product appears to be going strong. Hormel plans to release two new varieties, which will complement the existing offerings of “pretzel” and “double peanut butter.”

Hormel bought the Skippy brand three years ago for $700 million. The company launched Spam in 1937, and it remains one of Hormel’s big sellers.

—Distributed by Tribune Content Agency.