Clif Bar vs. Kind Snacks

Overview

Clif Bar vs. Kind Snacks refers to arguments had about ingredients between the two companies on their social media accounts.

Background

On March 6th, @ClifBar^[1] tweeted a blog post of theirs explaining an ad they took out in the New York Times challenging Kind Snacks to go organic and said, "We believe that going organic is the key to creating a healthier, more just and sustainable food system. We also know that we can’t change it alone. So we’re challenging @KINDSnacks to go organic. We’ll even help them by lending our expertise. #organic" (shown below, left). The tweet gained 190 likes in three months. @KINDSnacks^[2] responded by saying, "It’s deceptive to try to pass off organic brown rice syrup as healthy. We’d be happy to meet with you and share why we focus on making snacks that always lead with nutrient-dense ingredients like whole nuts, whole grains & whole fruit – instead of sugar" (shown below, right). The tweet gained over 270 likes in three months.

Notable Developments

On March 6th, @ClifBar and @KindSnacks continued their back-and-forth. @Clifbar^[3] tweeted, "Part of our sustainable, organic food supply is having pride in our ingredients, including organic brown rice syrup & other organic sweeteners. Calling out individual ingredients won't deter us. We source 117 organic ingredients across our supply chain. Won't you join us?" (shown below, left). @KINDSnacks^[4] responded by saying, "Give us a call, you have our number and we’d be happy to meet. Bonus: It’s cheaper than a New York Times ad" (shown below, right). The tweet gained over 140 likes in three months.

On June 10th, 2019, Kind Snacks posted their new ad campaign to YouTube and Facebook which explicitly calls out Clif Bar for the amount of sugar in their products. The ad gained over 1.2 million views on YouTube in four days (shown below).

That same day, CLIF Bar^[5] responded on Facebook saying, "Hi! We just heard we’re in your ad! You left out, though, that Clif Bars actually aren’t a snack like Kind Bars--they’re the ultimate energy bars, crafted for sustained energy during physical activity. They've fueled world class athletes for 27 years. Plus, they're made with organic ingredients" (shown below, left). The two continued to argue in the thread about misleading customers (shown below, right).

Search Interest

External References