Food and beverage companies banking on Super Bowl sales amid pandemic

Yahoo Finance’s Alexis Christoforous and Brooke DiPalma discuss the top Super Bowl snacks ahead of the big game.

Video Transcript

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ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: This weekend, Super Bowl parties, well, they're going to look a lot different because of the pandemic. But it looks like the food and beverage we'll be enjoying will look pretty familiar. Brooke DiPalma is here now with the details. Hi, Brooke.

BROOKE DIPALMA: Alexis, that's right. Unfortunately, but fortunately for these big brands, we're going to be enjoying snacking 2% more than we did last year during Super Bowl 2020. According to Frito-Lay's Snack Index, they sent out 70 million pounds of snacks ahead of the big game, as more people are sitting at home to watch the game, as opposed to going out to those parties and bars.

Now, if you take a look at what exactly we're enjoying, according to this US snack index, it turns out that for the third year in a row, salsa takes the cake here, followed by dips, cheese, and spreads, then followed by French onion dip, and last, but certainly not least-- this is what I'm going to be getting this Sunday-- is guacamole, that coming in last according to Frito-Lay Snack Index.

And of course, Domino's also looking to capitalize on a big game. Last year, they sent out two million pizza buys on game day. That's about 30% more than they send out on a typical Sunday. And that's enough to stretch across 6,000 football fields. Just imagine all that pizza that we're all going to be consuming this Sunday.

And of course, you can't have a big game, a big Super Bowl Sunday, without those chicken wings. This year, Buffalo Wild Wings expecting to reach, if not go beyond, last year's number of sending out or being sold 11 million chicken wings. Can you imagine all those chicken wings? I don't know if I can.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: That's crazy. And I'm with you on the guacamole. Avocados are huge. Record amounts of avocado is being sold. Always a big part of my Super Bowl celebration. But a lot of these food companies also spending big to advertise during the Super Bowl. And I know they've got a little celebrity power as well, as always.

BROOKE DIPALMA: That's right. One of those commercials that are already creating a lot of buzz is Cheetos' debut of its Crunch Pop Mix. That celebrity couple starring in that commercial is Mila Kunis alongside Ashton Kutcher and even featuring Shaggy.

- Did you steal my Cheetos again?

- Just tell him it wasn't you.

- (SINGING) But I caught you at the counter.

- (SINGING) It wasn't me.

- (SINGING) I saw you snacking on the sofa.

- (SINGING) It wasn't me.

BROOKE DIPALMA: Certainly a fun commercial there, debuting the celebrity couple alongside this innovation that just got released by PepsiCo earlier this year of both Cheetos and popcorn. That mix together really a new product for the company as consumers really look for more innovation, as opposed to those old fan favorites, like those Lay's potato chips.

Now another company, a fast food company, making a huge debut in the Super Bowl Sunday is Chipotle. This is the first Super Bowl commercial for the fast food brand. They're really taking a look at their sustainability impact. Now alongside this commercial titled, "Can a Burrito Change the World," they're going to donate $1 to young farmers this Super Bowl Sunday for every single meal that is sold. This is a long initiative of Chipotle to really understand the consumer and meet them where they're at, to really bring real food to consumers.

And last but not least, Mars swapping out-- last year, they had that big Snickers debut commercial with that huge haul. This year, they're lending the stage to M&M's. And they're also featuring Dan Levy, the, of course, star getting a lot of buzz this year. And they're poking fun at the Karen's of the world-- you know, a huge meme that's going on this year. So it's certainly a lot to watch on the fast food front this Super Bowl Sunday, as we're both eating and watching the big game.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Now we need some things to be consistent. We need to have our guacamole on Super Bowl Sunday. We need to have the Super Bowl ads. And I guess we need to have Tom Brady in it because he's in it again, too. All right, Brooke DiPalma, thanks so much.

BROOKE DIPALMA: And Patrick Mahomes.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Yeah, absolutely. Now, he's-- you know. I'm excited. It's going to be a really good match up. The old and the young, right? We'll see who comes out on top. Enjoy your Super Bowl, Brooke. Thanks so much.