April Fools' Day Food Jokes That Turned into Real Products

Today, I woke up to multiple—multiple—instagram posts of L.A. actors claiming that they were just cast in the next season of Heated Rivalry. And that’s all fun and games… except I myself was ACTUALLY cast in the next season of Heated Rivalry! So you can imagine my slight annoyance with all the fakers out there. I’ll be playing Trophy #3 in the trophy room scene. Please watch and support me.

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Anyways, April Fools’ Day is upon us. For the food world, that means brands use this opportunity to point at us and laugh. “Haha! You really thought you were getting Cheez-It cereal?! Sucker!!!” But sometimes, on rare occasions, the joke was never a joke to begin with. Or people see the stunt product and yell so loudly that they actually want it, brands give in and give it to us.

These are three April Fools’ Day products that turned out to exist in real life. Enjoy!

Dr Pepper Tic Tacs

This one is the clearest example of bullying a brand into making something real. Tic Tac teased Dr Pepper-flavored mints right around April Fools’ Day in 2025, and people immediately panicked. Not because it sounded bad. Because they wanted it, immediately. And sure enough, the joke didn’t stay a joke. The product officially launched nationwide as a limited release earlier this year, with that signature cherry-forward Dr Pepper flavor packed into tiny, poppable mints.

Moral of the story: Sometimes you just need to scream loud enough in an instagram comment section to get what you want. That’s how I became Trophy #3, after all.

Velveeta Hair Dye

Velveeta dropped a metallic, cheese-inspired gold hair dye on April 1… and insisted it was not a joke. No one believed them, only to find out that this was a real, purchasable product inspired by Velveeta’s aggressively golden color sitting in stores. Convincing people that something couldn’t possibly be real only to have it be very, very real is the truest April Fools’ Day joke a brand can make, if you ask me. Nice job, Velveeta. Nice job.

KFC Fried Chicken Toothpaste

This one still feels fake, even though we actually reviewed it for ourselves last year. KFC introduced fried chicken toothpaste as part of an April Fools’ stunt, but the intention was to always make it real. Influencers posted themselves trying it on camera for April Fools’ Day last year, and come April 1, it was immediately available to buy for a limited time.

According to our very own review, it tastes really similar to KFC chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy in a good way… but there was an unexpected and off-putting grease factor in the toothpaste that kinda ruins the experience. Major points, though, to KFC for making this abomination a real thing.

Honorary Mention: Crumbl’s Almost Everything Bagel Sandwich Cookie

Crumbl’s new and improved Almost Everything Bagel Sandwich Cookie debuts today, April Fools’ Day, for one day only—so make sure to grab it ASAP! It’s exactly what it sounds like: a slightly savory sandwich cookie seasoned with a true everything bagel seasoning mix (sesame seeds, garlic, onion, salt, the whole shebang) and a cream cheese-style frosting in the middle.

The very first iteration of this Crumbl cookie was critiqued for its lazy everything bagel seasoning, which didn’t have garlic or onion (blasphemy), but this one claims to have all the correct spices in there. Obviously, this is less of a prank and more of a cute April Fools’ Day surprise, but I’m including it in the hopes that Crumbl fans try it while they can. The last version of this cookie was sold in 2022—who knows how long it will be before this comes back?