Daily Briefing (Insiders Only): When The Food Industry Thinks It Is Funny…
If Expo West is our Super Bowl, then April Fools’ is our Oscars.
Today marks the one day of the year where the food and beverage industry collectively comes together to compete on a scale that heavily favors weirdness as long as it comes with a healthy dose of creativity.
The annual gag-product launch tradition has previously propelled some into the spotlight of mainstream media and pushed others to even innovate on what they thought to be too obscene, obscure or outright inedible.
What does the playing field look like this year? Who would we nominate for best new gag product? The winner likely won’t come from A Complete Unknown, but we also won’t be doling out praises for any multi-million-dollar backed marketing schemes (Anora-copy cats, we’re looking at you).
Some standardly outlandish innovations have already landed in our inbox – with everything from Deep Indian Kitchen’s Chicken Tikka Masala Ice Cream to a Hot Honey-flavored Perfect Bar. We are grateful to be able to say no one will ever actually be able to choke down a glass of Chilk either, a.k.a. Chicken + Milk blended together to create the latest “shelf-unstable beverage.”
But elsewhere, the pitches for gag-worthy launches are (dare we say) maturing. Welch’s layered on a crumb of context and a bit of condescension, mocking the trend of outlandishly expensive strawberries with its own “$19 Welch’s Fruit Snacks Single Strawberry.” Aldi jumped in with its own direct hit, too, joking about the introduction of a dedicated Artificial Color Aisle.
This year, some brands have proven that securing some buzz doesn’t always mean leaning into “innovation” (take note of the heavy use of quotes, please). Soom had us tricked and totally ready for its restaurant debut when it touted the opening of a pop-up shop. It even shared a faux, tahini-filled menu that we would absolutely love to be real (Tahini Coladas included).
Gut health brand BelliWelli had everyone at Nosh HQ raising an eyebrow when it proclaimed that an avid fan had named their twins after the prebiotic supplement powder.
- Belli and Welli may have been cute monikers while two tiny tots were still in diapers… but we’d seriously feel bad if those fledgling humans were still branded by fiber well into adulthood.
It’s activations like those – teetering on the edge of “could this be real?” – that make the most noise and, thus, generate the most potential to propel a brand into mainstream conversations, even if it’s just for a moment.
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