Dive Brief:

• Taco Bell is partnering with Kellanova to release two items with the snack maker’s Cheez-It cracker: the Big Cheez-It Crunchwrap Supreme and Big Cheez-It Tostada, according to a press release. The items feature a Cheez-It that’s 16 times larger than the standard cracker. The product is available nationwide beginning Thursday for a limited time.
• The two food companies first collaborated in 2022 to test out the Big Cheez-It Crunchwrap Supreme and the Big Cheez-It Tostada for a limited time at a single Taco Bell location in Irvine, California.
• “Cheez-It has always been about more than just snacking — it's about elevating cheese to new heights for salty snack lovers with an obsession for cheese and an appetite for excitement,” Jessica Waller, general manager of Kellanova Away From Home, said in a statement. “Teaming up with Taco Bell has been an incredible experience for Kellanova to bring the Cheez-It passion for cheesy flavor and fun into new culinary territories.”

Dive Insight:

As food companies look for new ways to increase usage and generate consumer buzz about their products, fast-food restaurants have proven to be a popular channel. Taco Bell has already partnered with PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay to use the food and beverage giant’s Doritos and Fritos in some of its menu items. Friendly’s also has a Doritos Cool Ranch ChoppedCheese Burger, and KFC, which is owned by the same company as Taco Bell, previously sold a crispy chicken filet with Cheetos sauce. 

Kellanova, which split last year with cereal maker WK Kellogg Co, is now solely focused on snacks. Cheez-It is the company’s second best-selling brand behind Pringles. Last year, Cheez-It posted net sales of $1.4 billion, according to the packaged food maker. Kellanova is moving aggressively to market the Cheez-It brand beyond its Taco Bell collaboration. It announced in May a Cheez-It Diner in New York that features a Deluxe Cheez-It Milkshake, Big Grilled Cheez, Mac & Cheez-It and a jukebox that plays for Cheez-It crackers instead of coins.

Cara Tragseiler, senior brand director with Kellanova, told Nation’s Restaurant News that there is strong demand for innovative collaborations, particularly with offerings that are in new and exciting formats. The Taco Bell menu items, the publication noted, help position the Cheez-It brand as a viable option in other foodservice items.

Taco Bell’s latest limited-time offerings are part of the brand’s broader menu development strategy, which it shared in February during its Live Mas event. The chain previously rolled out a Cantina Chicken menu nationwide in March and revamped its value menu two months earlier. New menu items this year will also include Cheese Chicken Crispanada, Crispy Chicken Nuggest and Cheesy Street Chalupas.