Jimmy Fallon was less than eager to try Progresso’s chicken noodle soup-flavored hard candies, or “soup drops,” which General Mills released this month.
“I tried it,” “The Tonight Show” host said, “and it sucks.”
Pun intended or not, that seems to be the point of this publicity stunt: attention at any cost for the struggling brand.
General Mills-owned Progresso recently released soup-flavored hard candies, or soup drops, available during only limited windows on Thursdays in January.
General Mills is releasing the soup-flavored lozenges in limited quantities online for just a few Thursday mornings in January. Progresso is relying on a combination of exclusivity and must-try weirdness to put more eyes on the brand and more cans in grocery carts.
It seems to be working: The first batch sold out in less than an hour (the site currently has a message suggesting customers check back next Thursday).
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“We took the beloved flavors of our Progresso chicken noodle soup and packed them into a fun, savory candy soup drop for a totally new way to enjoy the taste you love whenever and wherever you want,” MC Comings, business unit director for Progresso at Golden Valley-based General Mills, said in a news release.
The cans of soup drops, which cost $2.49 plus shipping, also come with a regular can of Progresso’s chicken noodle soup.
Progresso is a small part of General Mills’ overall portfolio, representing about 5% of retail sales, according to Jefferies research. Still, it's a big name in the soup aisle, with about 16% market share. Competitor Campbell’s takes in nearly half of all retail dollars spent on soup.
Campbell’s and Progresso both saw soup sales decline throughout last year and 2023, according to Nielsen data. Where Progresso did see some sales spikes, it was from price increases. The brand struggled to consistently sell more soup year over year.
For several years, General Mills warned that Progresso is at risk of being worth more on paper than it could fetch when sold. The company last reduced the book value of the brand by $132 million in 2018 “as a result of lower sales projections” through the long term, according to quarterly reports.
Progresso was reportedly for sale in 2021 alongside Hamburger Helper, though no deal emerged. Hamburger Helper sold in 2022 for $610 million.
It’s possible Progresso is still for sale, but in the meantime the brand is taking advantage of flu season to sell “that feeling of a hug in a bowl” in a hard candy.
“The goal? To remind you of the comfort you can find in a traditional bowl of Progresso,” General Mills said in a statement. “So enjoy soup drops while they’re available for National Soup Month, but grab the real thing whenever you want the warm coziness of a bowl of soup.”
