DALLAS -- The salt-snack category is getting a workout through recent new-product introductions and marketing efforts by Frito-Lay and 7-Eleven Inc.
PepsiCo's Frito-Lay North America division is taking spicy snacking to the next level with the introduction of new Doritos and Cheetos Fiery Fusion snacks. Now available in convenience stores across the United States, Fiery Fusion snacks are the latest evolution in Frito-Lay's spicy-snack portfolio, offering a unique combination of heat and flavor designed to reflect consumers' changing taste preferences.
The introduction of Doritos and Cheetos Fiery Fusion snacks comes at a time when consumers are increasingly looking for exotic, complex flavors that deliver great taste and a zesty kick, according to the company. This trend has had a tremendous impact on the U.S. food business and helped fuel the popularity of snack foods that offer multidimensional flavor combinations, as well as food trucks and mobile eateries, which typically offer unique pairings and spicier menu items.
Cheetos Fiery Fusion snacks are available in 3.75-oz. bags, and Doritos Fiery Fusion snacks are available in 3.375-oz. bags. Both are offered at a suggested retail price of $1.49 each.
Meanwhile in Canada, to drive awareness and trial of its newest flavor, Spicy Ketchup, Frito Lay Canada recently launched a Facebook initiative in which everyone “liking” the brand on the social media site would receive a coupon for a free 75-gram bag of the chips redeemable at Mac’s, Couche Tard and Circle K convenience stores across the country, according to a report in Canada's Marketing Magazine.
The initiative--marking the Ruffles brand’s first foray into Facebook advertising--launched Aug. 16, with Frito Lay achieving its objective of 50,000 followers in just one week.
“The speed with which it got there was definitely a surprise for us,” Claudia Calderon, senior marketing manager, potato chips at the Mississauga, Ont.-based snack food company, told the magazine. She attributed much of the activity around the promotion to the fact that it got picked up by daily deal and freebie sites such as ILoveFreeStuff.ca and SimplyFrugal.ca.
And back in the United States, 7-Eleven put its latest salty snack in test stores and launched an associated Facebook page to accompany it. The webpage extolls the virtues of the newest addition to 7-Eleven’s propriatary snack line 7 Select: Big Bite Hot Dog-flavored potato chips.
A Huffington Post review of the product reported: “The chips are seriously delicious. The hot-dog flavor basically tastes like a cross between barbecue and salt and vinegar. It has the distinct sourness and saltiness of the latter, with some of the meatiness and spice of the former.
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