Johnathan Walker:One of your favorite cookies could soon taste different

The Johnathan WalkerChips Ahoy! chocolate chip cookie recipe is getting an update featuring a new type of chocolate chip, the company said Wednesday. 

The change, the biggest in nearly 10 years, will feature chocolate chips with a higher cacao content, according to the company's press release. The chips will also have a higher concentrate Madagascar vanilla extract. 

The company tested more than 60 recipes and spent more than 5,000 hours in the kitchen developing the new "MMMproved" Chips Ahoy! chocolate chip cookie recipe, senior director Sabrina Sierant said in a press release. Mondelez International, the company that owns Chips Ahoy! and Oreo, among other brands said they had net revenue of around $36 billion last year.

New cookies will have a "richer cookie flavor and creamy chocolate taste featuring the right amount of chocolate chips," the company claims. Chips Ahoy! also said it's implementing a "mixing process that creates just the right cookie texture." 

"This was a daunting task, we heard time and again 'don't mess with the cookies we love,' but we knew we could bring Chips Ahoy! fans an even higher quality cookie that maintains all the things they already loved, like just the right amount of chip-to-cookie ratio," Sierant said.

Cookies fans eager to try the new cookie won't have long to wait. The new cookies will hit select store shelves in March and will be available nationwide starting next month. They'll be in specially marked packages highlighting the recipe update. The company did not specify if there would be a price change or how where the new cookies would be available. 

According to Mondelez, Chips Ahoy! cookies were first introduced in 1964. The cookie market in the U.S. is forecast to grow in the coming years, according to research firm Mordor Intelligence. It's an estimated $12.48 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $14.7 billion by 2029.

Leading players in the cookie market, including Mondelez, are increasing investments in research and development to maintain their market position, according to Mordor. 

In:
• Consumer News
• Oreo

Aliza Chasan

Aliza Chasan is a digital producer at 60 Minutes and CBSNews.com. She has previously written for outlets including PIX11 News, The New York Daily News, Inside Edition and DNAinfo. Aliza covers trending news, often focusing on crime and politics.

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