• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer, Yesterday

Americans are hanging out less. Johnsonville thinks a soda-infused sausage might help.

The company and Dr Pepper are rolling out Johnsonville Dr Pepper Inspired Sausage nationwide, turning a mashup that first generated social-media disbelief into a full-scale retail launch.

Executives insist the point isn’t novelty -- it’s neighbors. “This is less about how often people are BBQing and more about who is at those grill-outs,” said Jamie Schmelzer, vice president of marketing, in an email to CPG Insider. He points to the erosion of local relationships and says the brand team has gotten plenty of insights from Derek Thompson’s “The Anti-Social Century,” a piece in February's issue of The Atlantic. That’s more than think-piece fodder: “Our products have always shone brightest at block parties, tailgate parties, potlucks and brunches,” he said.

Johnsonville’s Harris Poll research backs the idea: 73% of Americans say they’re hanging out less than they used to. At the same time, 91% agree that good food makes gatherings more fun. In other words, people may not be social, but they still like eating.

Enter the sausage mashup, which Schmelzer hopes can exploit that gap. The launch includes a 15-second spot with a dubious voice: “Are there no rules?”

“This Dr Pepper collaboration is definitely meant to grab attention for dinner sausage,” Schmelzer said. He argues the idea becomes less absurd the longer consumers think about Dr Pepper’s long history in marinades and barbecue culture. “This product might just stick around. We shall see!”

That’s a bigger bet than it sounds. In a marketing era crowded with forced whimsy and performative “fun,” consumers have grown skilled at sniffing out gimmicks. Schmelzer dismisses that concern. “We always aim for authentic,” he said. “We made a sausage that Dr Pepper agrees tastes like their beloved soda and got comfortable that some people will love it and others very much will not.” In fact, he says some of the best reactions to the recipe “are the ones that creatively, honestly and hilariously say some version of 'Nope!’”

Polarization, in fact, is part of the plan. Debate is engagement, and engagement is proximity. And proximity, the brand hopes, leads to shared grills. If even a few more chairs get pulled into the driveway, Johnsonville may decide the experiment was worth the fizz.