It’s not just occasions such as Valentine’s Day and Christmas that see food and drink retailers and manufacturers creating special themed products. Oh no – whenever there’s a big occasion, you’ll find many of them jumping on the bandwagon: some with clever new product ideas, some with products that, quite frankly, look disgusting – and others with new developments whose link to the occasion in question is pretty tenuous.
With the 2014 World Cup now upon us, it hardly comes as a surprise that many food and drink brands are offering their own themed products to celebrate the month-long event – and as the title of this post says, they really do vary in their appeal and their World Cup links. Here’s our round-up of some of the good, the bad and the tenuous that we’ve stumbled across…
Pieminister – The Brazilian Pie
It’s not just because they’re a local brand that I love Pieminister’s World Cup contribution – it’s actually pretty clever! Inspired by the host country’s famous Feijoada stews, they’ve created a limited edition pie made with free range British chicken, black beans and sweet potato in a rich tomato sauce, flavoured with free range chorizo, chipotle chilli and paprika. Sounds good…
Aldi – Hunter’s Football Sausages
I think I’ll pass on these “football sausages” from Aldi: a jar of five sausages with football images emblazoned on the sides. They’ve got the novelty factor, sure, but for some reason they just don’t appeal…
Budweiser – World Cup bottles
The new limited edition gold bottle from Budweiser is available across 40 countries, and fashioned from aluminium. The brand has also launched limited edition cans and glass bottles to capitalise on the event…
Pot Noodle – Brazilian BBQ Steak
Personally, I’d rather have a real BBQ steak…but if the idea of a Pot Noodle floats your boat, try their new Brazilian BBQ Steak variety. Tasty…
Lucozade Energy – The Brazilian / Lucozade Sport – Brazilian Guava
Lucozade have got in on the action with two new drinks that are based on the country’s carnival atmosphere – a mango, mandarin and tropical fruit version of their Energy drink, and a Brazilian Guava flavoured Sport drink….
Krispy Kreme – Golden Balls Doughnut
Hand-dipped in chocolate icing, filled with their Kreme and decorated in a football pattern with gold dust, Krispy Kreme’s new World Cup themed doughnuts are available throughout the summer in the UK…
Other brands that have repackaged existing products…
There are a fair few of them. The actual product contained within the packaging hasn’t changed, it’s just been given a World Cup slant to try and up the sales during the tournament…
Know of any more? Let us know!