PringleCrocs and Ranch-flavored Burts Bees: 10  brand collaborations that never should have happened

In April, Crocs partnered with Pringles to release a limited-edition, chip-themed clog. One of the shoes even came with an ankle holster for carrying Pringles on the go. But it certainly wasn’t the first off-the-walls food brand collaboration we’ve seen this year—and it won’t be the last, even though we’ve had more than our fill.



While gimmicky food stunts are nothing new (remember 2015’s rainbow bagel? ), Frankenstein pairings of mismatched flavors from big-name partner brands felt, just a few years ago, relatively fresh and bold. Van Leeuwen’s 2021 partnership with Kraft to combine two nostalgic childhood favorites, ice cream and mac and cheese , into one ill-fated scoop, sent the internet into a frenzy. Now, though, it’s par for the course in the growing hellscape of food-centric brand collaborations.



Oscar Meyer bologna face masks, Peeps Pepsi, and IHOP Lay’s chips are just a few of the wacky collabs that have launched so far in 2024. Of course, there’s a method to the madness. Brands want to be where the customer is, whether that’s on your screen, in your cupboard, or, in the case of January’s Burt’s Bees x Hidden Valley Ranch collaboration, on your lips. If a company can manage all three, even better. We live in an attention economy. When it comes to brand reach, the eyes eat first.



Here, we take a look at the what and why behind some of the, um, splashiest recent food brand collaborations.



[Photo: Burt’s Bees]



Burt’s Bees x Hidden Valley Ranch



A whole story could be ( and has been ) written about the proliferation of ranch-flavored things, just in the past few years alone. Hidden Valley, specifically, is blazing a very flashy trail to make ranch the next big American foodstuff, i.e. apple pie.



“America’s flavor is ranch,” said Nick Higgins, general manager of food business for Clorox, Hidden Valley’s parent company, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal . “It’s this uniquely American thing.” And apparently, that patriotic spirit pairs well with moisturized lips. This January, Hidden Valley teamed up with natural skin care company, Burt’s Bees—also owned by Clorox—to debut a four pack of savory lip balms. Flavors included Hidden Valley Ranch, buffalo sauce, crunchy celery, and carrot. And they sold out in one day.



[Photo: Oreo]



Sour Patch Kids Oreos



Care for some citric acid with your sandwich cookie? This sour-sweet candy/Oreo mashup landed on grocery store shelves in April, and it’s inspired some mixed reactions on social media. Like many unusual combos, you either love ‘em or you hate ‘em. According to the team behind Oreo’s novelty flavors , those kinds of strong reactions are part of what drive unexpected collaborations like these because they draw consumers’ attention back to the original beloved product.



[Photo: Kizik]



Kizik x Jet Puffed



The apparel world is also not safe from food brand collabs. Footwear company Kizik’s Jet-Puffed Roamer , which launched just in time for National S’mores Day last August, is a sneaker with a golden-brown upper and toasted-marshmallow-white ombré-esque sole. The toasty sneaker was a play on Kizik’s standard Mars Roamer for the summer months, and is no longer available.



[Photo: Taco Bell]



Taco Bell x Cheez-It



Taco Bell has long been lauded as a leader in the food innovation space (and was one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies in 2024) . The company is staying true to its reputation for an ever-evolving menu with the return of the Cheez-It Crunchwrap, slated for sometime this year. It’s exactly what it sounds like—a Crunchwrap with a giant Cheez-It cracker in the middle.



This collab had a limited test run in 2022 and flew off the shelves at record speeds. It follows in the footsteps of the fan favorite Doritos Locos Tacos, which, when it debuted in 2013, sold 100 million tacos in just 10 weeks .



[Photo: PepsiCo]



Shaq’s Pepsi ‘Sneak’er



This Reebok sneaker design, announced in February, combines the old-school celebrity marketing approach with the recent fixation on food brand collabs. The shoes are a custom version of Shaq’s existing high-top sneaker with Reebok (called the “Shaq Attaq”).



The ‘Sneak’ers come in Pepsi ’s classic blue, white, and red color scheme. The team designed the size 22 shoes to accommodate a Pepsi Mini can into the sole , which allows Shaq to “enjoy a crisp and refreshing sip of Pepsi or Pepsi Zero Sugar whenever the urge arises.” Of course, this little detail begs the inevitable question, Why would Shaq want to drink a room-temp Pepsi from a shoe? Only 22 pairs of the Pepsi-toting shoes were created and have since been raffled off to fans in a one-time sweepstakes.



[Photo: Coffee Mate]



Dr. Pepper x Coffee Mate



Dirty soda, which typically describes a soft drink mixed with flavorings and Half and Half, has been on the rise for several years. Originally, it was spurred on by the proliferation of shops like Swig and Fiiz , which began by catering to Mormon communities who avoid coffee for religious reasons.



However, in the wake of the WaterTok craze , wherein creators made colorful water drinks filled with syrups and powders, dirty sodas have officially hit the mainstream. Dr. Pepper’s collaboration with Coffee Mate this March capitalized on that trend, inviting drinkers to mix the coconut lime-flavored creamer with their soda for the most intense sugar rush of their lives. 



[Photo: Mattel]



Heinz Barbiecue



Mattel’s Barbie brand has partnered with just about everything since the movie came out last year, and this hot pink barbeque sauce is the tipping point. The unsettlingly bright condiment was released 270 days after the movie came out in theaters, prompting Fast Compan y to issue a moratorium on all bright pink objects for the foreseeable future. For its part, Heinz could have its own category of zany brand partnerships, thanks in part to its own in-house agency .



[Photo: Compartés]



Velveeta x Compartés



“The Matrix is either completely broken or a rogue program is having some fun at our expense,” journalist Michael Walsh wrote of these Velveeta-flavored truffles for Nerdist . It would be difficult to find a more apt description of the limited-edition chocolates, released last May, which included a cheese-infused white chocolate exterior and a satisfying shell shape. Unsurprisingly, this food brand collaboration was also a product of the masterminds at Kraft Heinz, which owns Velveeta as a subsidiary. 



[Photo: Crocs]



Pringle x Crocs



Crocs, like Heinz, is notoriously all-in on launching the most out-of-left-field collaborations imaginable. Honorable mentions include lines with Kellogg, McDonald’s, Taco Bell, KFC, and 7-Eleven. “Yes, we’re ugly; yes, we’re polarizing,” Crocs CMO Heidi Cooley told Fast Company in 2021. “But importantly, we’re one-of-a-kind.”



The company’s collaboration with Pringles, which launched in April, did manage to deliver an innovation that we’ve never seen before: a dedicated chip holster. The line came with a few classic Pringle-themed clogs and Jibbitz alongside an above-the-ankle boot with a special space to store a can of Pringles on the go. Necessary? No. Gimmicky? Yes. Fun? Also, unfortunately, yes. 



The $100 boots are no longer available on the Crocs site, and resellers are now hawking them with big mark-ups.



[Photo: Olipop]



Olipop x Barbie



It appears that the Barbie collabs aren’t over just yet. In May, the prebiotic soda company Olipop announced a peaches-and-cream-flavored soda inspired by Barbie, complete with yet another neon-pink package. Other smaller CPG brands are getting in on food brand partnerships with bigger fish in the industry, too: Olive oil purveyor Graza recently advertised a recipe on Instagram in collaboration with Pabst Blue Ribbon, and the tinned fish company Fishwife did the same with Cheez-It.



In the ever-constant search for new consumers and more reach, brands have developed a taste for the scroll-stopping unsavory. At least for now, consumers have the appetite.