Celebrities lend star power to bakery and snack launches
Selena Gomez, David Beckham, and Mr. T have lent their fame to the food game.
Courtesy of Mondelez International
It’s always fun covering the food field—one thing that makes my job of writing about bakery and snack news interesting is when celebrities join in the food fun. Seeing the familiar face or name of a celebrated singer, actor, athlete, or other notable individual gives cookies, chips, and other noshes that much more flavor.
Most recently, Selena Gomez—depending on your age, she’s best known for being a singer, Only Murders in the Building actress, or beauty business mogul—lent her name and signature to LTO Oreos. Like many celeb-centric product releases, her version of Mondelēz International’s popular sweet treat goes a bit further than merely putting her mug on the packaging. Instead, her personality is baked in—literally. The horchata flavor of the crème links to her Latina heritage, and the chocolate wafer cookies are embossed with images that tie to her musical career. Scanning the QR code on the package takes you to some fun Selena content.
Ms. Gomez is far from alone; throughout the years, legions of celebrities have not just lent their monikers and mugs to baked items and snacks, but they’ve also had their famous identities as part of the recipe, with product shapes and flavors that reflect their personalities. The SF&WB team has had the pleasure of writing about a few; others date back to our childhoods. I also prevailed upon my publishing company colleagues to jog my memory for examples, and they very helpfully came up with many that had slipped my mind. Here are just a few:
BEEUP Snacks from David Beckham: These BFY fruit bites incorporate honey, and the marketing push for the former athlete’s new line of nibbles tout the sweet substance’s health benefits. The line was inspired by the Beckham family’s shared hobby of beekeeping.
Mr. T cereal: A child of the 1980s, I absolutely begged my mom to purchase this sweetened Quaker product—after all, my idol Pee-Wee Herman considered the T-shaped treat to be an essential part of a nutritious breakfast. My cries went unanswered, sadly.
Rap Snacks: BNP Media panel and research director Ariane Claire reminded me of this line of savory snacks, each bearing the name of a noted rapper or R&B star. She cited Cardi B’s products in the Rap Snacks portfolio; FWIW, my personal fave is the Rick Ross Sweet Chili Lemon Pepper potato chips.
Mosh brain-boosting bars: The Kennedys sadly have a family history of dementia; this inspired journalist Maria Shriver and her son Patrick Schwarzenegger (who absolutely killed it on the last season of The White Lotus) to launch these bars, with ingredients purported to help brain health.
Broadus Foods breakfast items: You might not recognize the name Calvin Broadus, but I bet you’re familiar with his alias, Snoop Dogg. He and business partner Percy Miller (aka fellow rap legend Master P) launched a line of cereals and other products in 2023, in partnership with Post.
Justin Verlander’s Fastball Bars: BNP’s Chief Creative Officer Mike Powell cherishes his box of these chewy granola bars, first introduced in 2014 (the sales of the snack benefited veterans' org Wins for Warriors). There must be something in those treats, because Verlander is still hurling in the majors at the tender age of 42.
Once Upon a Farm kid’s snacks: Technically this might not count among the above examples, because 13 Going on 30 actress Jennifer Garner owns this whole company, rather than endorses their products—however, mentioning it gives me an excuse to share this pic of me and my new best friend Jen from Expo West.
Do you have any favorite celebrity food products? If so, I'd love to hear, whether they're recent launches or tasty tidbits from years gone by; send yours to me at spinnerj@bnpmedia.com.
