Beans have a well-deserved reputation for being a multi-sensory product. Remember the “musical fruit” ditty? But it’s no joking matter for Heinz, who teamed up with food artists Bompas & Parr to create a unique promotion for its Beanz product.
According to the UK’s Design Week,
The stunt comprised the creation of a different ‘experience’ for each of the five flavours in the range – which includes Curry, Cheddar Cheese, Barbecue, Garlic & Herbs and Fiery Chilli.
Each is inspired by the ‘look, feel and taste of the different beans’, says Bompas & Parr. The Cheddar Cheese variant’s bowl, for instance, is formed from around 1.2kg of yellow wax, ‘based on the form, texture and colour of a traditional round of cheese’, according to Heinz; while the bulb-shaped Garlic & Herbs bowls were hand-assembled using 96 layers of 750 micron thick card, aiming to reference the ‘papery’ exterior layers of a garlic bulb.
The sensory overload keeps going with a “musical spoon” that has an embedded MP3 player programmed to play music relevant to the particular flavor, such as Latin samba music for the chili-flavored beans.
Consumers will actually be able to buy the unusual limited-run boxed sets of Beanz for about $85 at London’s Fortnum & Mason. Here’s a video showing off the product:
As goofy as this sounds, one has to give Heinz some credit – they have taken an interesting direction for drawing attention to an otherwise prosaic product. And, from a neuromarketing standpoint, it seems likely that the experience afforded by the sensory accouterments might actually make the beans taste better – at least for consumers not put off by a super-costly can of beans or a spoon with tunes!
Had you not reviewed this, I would have thought it was a dry attempt at humor. Are those for realzz?
This is amazing! Incorporating several different senses in the bean eating experience. This is a really cool concept. I will be surprised if it really catches on. That’s pretty out there.