KD launches mac n' cheese flavoured soda in Canada

Kraft Heinz Co. has teamed up with a Canadian soda brand for a limited-edition beverage that tastes like its Kraft Dinner mac n’ cheese, and it will only be available in Canada.

The food and beverage company, in partnership with Toronto-based Solly’s Craft Soda, on Wednesday launched the sweet and savoury carbonated drink that combines cream soda with a hint of KD’s cheesy flavour.

“A soda might be the last place you would expect to find KD, which is exactly what made teaming up with Solly’s Craft Soda so much fun, ” said Kraft Heinz marketing head Daniel Lundberg.

Kraft said the beverage goes great with a bowl of mac n’ cheese, or on its own. It is available on Amazon from Sept. 23 and will be sold at participating retailers in early October, while quantities last.

The brand said the idea for the new and “unexpected” drink came from fans having their mac n’ cheese in different ways like adding more KD cheese powder or experimenting with the latest “mac hack.”⁠

Solly’s Craft Soda founder Adin Wener said the partnership with Kraft is an opportunity to introduce the independent Canadian company’s modern approach to craft soda to Canadians across the country.

“This was an amazing challenge and product to work on,” said Wener. “It’s wonderfully strange — and somehow, it works.”

The KD soda is just one of the brand’s Canadian launches to date. It previously launched products in Canada like KD Mac & Cheesecake in May and KD Ramen in June.

Last month, the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in Toronto featured an exclusive Kraft Dinner smoothie from Booster Juice, which blended KD’s cheesy flavour with mangos, pineapple juice, skim milk and vanilla frozen yogurt.

While now an American multinational company, Kraft Heinz has its Canadian roots. Kraft Foods was founded by James Lewis Kraft of Stevensville, Ont., and Heinz Canada was established in 1909 in Leamington, Ont. The two companies merged into Kraft Heinz Company in 2015 and is now one of the largest food and beverage companies in North America.

• Email: dpaglinawan@postmedia.com