• by Erik Oster , January 24, 2024

Plant-based foods brand Alpha Foods entered into an exclusive partnership with Aardman Animations, the Oscar-winning animation studio behind “Chicken Run” and its recently released sequel, “Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget.”

The launch of Alpha Foods’ new plant-based nuggets recipe in March will feature limited-edition packaging with characters from the movie, which is currently available globally on Netflix, and includes the tagline, “Choose plants -- No Fowl Play!”

Alpha Food Marketing Director Shingly Lee told Marketing Daily  the fowl-friendly film’s message “aligns ethically” with the LiveKindly Collective brand, as well as providing a unique opportunity to connect with its target audience. The original “Chicken Run” told the story of a group of chickens attempting to escape a farm where they were destined to be slaughtered and processed for meat. As its title implies, the plot of the sequel features chicken nuggets -- and the chickens’ attempts to avoid becoming one.

Lee said that branding was crucial for the upcoming nuggets launch and that Alpha Foods needed to find ways to connect with a millennial audience. “It’s perfect timing, because those millennials we’re targeting were watching ‘Chicken Run’ growing up,” she said.

That the film was given a wide Netflix release provides a unique opportunity for the brand to “punch above our weight class” and reach audiences at scale, she said, driving category awareness and increasing product visibility in-store by “becoming part of the cultural conversation.”

She adds, “We haven’t seen too many partnerships like this in the category at this scale."

The film addresses factory farming conditions “in a fun, approachable way” and “encourages both kid and adult audiences to be informed about their food choices and what animal consumption entails” -- which made it perfectly aligned with the brand’s goals to “make it easy for someone to dip their toe into plant-based” products, Lee explained. 

The brand will promote the product launch with an integrated media plan leaning into nostalgia around the “Chicken Run:” franchise, designed to drive consumers to stores to try the product, with a focus on digital. While Alpha Foods has previously pursued strategic ingredient partnerships with other brands, this marks the first time it is “dipping its toes into cultural partnerships,” Lee said, while touting the ability of content to drive broader awareness.