It’s Australia’s most popular cookie, but most people have never seen it in stock – here’s how you can get it

It is one of the most popular biscuits in Australia and has been in supermarkets since the 1930s, but millions of people across the country cannot afford it.

Arnott’s Yo-Yo Cookies have long been a much-loved treat in South Australia, where they have been sold exclusively for decades.

An incredible 95 per cent of the YoYos produced are stocked in South Australia and the other five per cent are scattered around the country in specialist shops, random IGAs and border towns.

According to Arnott’s, Yo-Yo biscuits are a “South Australian favourite” with a “deliciously crunchy” texture and sweet honey flavour.

Yo-Yos were first developed in 1932 by Adelaide bakery, grocery and confectionery company W. Menz and Co. and were named after the nostalgic toy that was fashionable at the time.

In the early 1960s, Arnott’s bought the cookie division of W. Menz and Co. and Yo-Yos have been sold under the family brand ever since.

Arnott’s briefly removed Yo-Yos from the market in 1997 to create “national uniformity”, but after an outcry from biscuit lovers in South Australia, they returned them to supermarkets in that state.

Mentions of the classic South Australian biscuit often spark lively online discussions with locals surprised to hear that other Australians have never seen or tasted the biscuit they say was a staple of their childhood.

“Never seen before,” said one man.

“Yoyos are still the best for dipping coffee in my opinion,” another wrote, and a third said: “You can never have just one.” I love them and have enjoyed them all my life here in South Africa.’

‘Bring them to Queensland. We had them for a very short time, the best cookies on the planet,” wrote a third.

Some sweet tooths called Yo-Yos the “best cookie on the planet,” while others fondly remember the catchy jingle that played in a television commercial in the ’80s.

‘Wait. Now what? Are these only in SA? My colleagues must think I’m angrier than usual when I sing that jingle,” one woman laughed.

‘I love YoYo’s. I have to rely on my family to bring them to me in Queensland,” said another.

Many buyers say they have seen Yo-Yo biscuits for sale outside of South Australia and one claims Western Australian IGAs often stock them.

“My favorites when I was a kid, I saw them once at Woolies in New South Wales,” one Facebook user recalled.

“I see them in Darwin shops all the time,” another responded.

“I bought them in Melbourne at Woolworths,” someone added.