A Candwich to Go

Posted By elissa on Aug 31, 2010 | 2 comments

My degrees are in Food Science, but I’m rather glad that I ended up in research vs. an industry job (like most of my fellow grads). As fascinating and fulfilling as studying food tech was, the prospect of spending my life making junk/snack/convenience foods had zero appeal. Even then, I was too much of a “foodie” to enjoy product development. Novelty drives the market, so no product idea is too far out… unless it doesn’t sell well, like, for example, Heinz’s ill-fated “Funky Fries.” Who cares if a product is a nutritional disaster? If it’s technically feasible, it’s worth trying.

Which brings me to something I saw today on Slashfood.com. The post linked to a New York Times article about an investment fraud indictment by the SEC. The accused money manager, Travis Wright, apparently diverted his clients’ funds into several… odd business investments – including, believe it or not, the “Candwich.”

A lawsuit by the federal Securities and Exchange Commission says that Mr. Wright promised returns of up to 24 percent on real estate investments, but that he put the money instead into Candwich development and other equally untried ideas.

Along with sales of canned sandwiches — Pepperoni Pizza Pocket and French Toast in a can were planned — Mr. Wright’s companies, under the banner of Waterford Funding, also invested in a company selling rose petals printed with greeting card sentiments and another selling watches over the Internet.

“Candwich” canned sandwiches? I have to admit, I did a double take on that one. Yeah, I saw the photos of the sandwiches-in-soda cans on Slashfood, but I thought it was a joke.

It isn’t.

According to the soon-to-be manufacturer…

Candwich is the perfect product for people on the go such as students, construction workers, soccer moms and outdoor enthusiasts.

Unique packaging offers convenience and protection while backpacking, camping, biking and other activities.

They’d be perfect for the zombie apocalypse, too, I imagine. 😉

Conceptually, there’s a level at which it kinda makes sense, but – based on my kids’ reactions (which were, respectively, “Ewwwwwww!!!” and “What the hell?!”) – I have a sneaking suspicion that Candwiches will end up like “Funky Fries” – which failed because “…consumers found no cord [sic] of familiarity with it.” That sounds about right. Mentally, I associate “sandwich” with “fresh;” and soda cans with liquids – not dry solids. I suppose the manufacturer sees the sheer novelty of it as a selling point, but from where I sit, it’s just a little too odd – and peanut-butter and jelly certainly isn’t compelling enough to make me overcome my hesitation.  Thus, it comes off more as a gimmick than a product that might actually fill a niche.

But that’s the world of food product development for you. Just because the world doesn’t need canned sandwiches is no reason not to produce them… unfortunately.