Justin Timberlake’s Taste-Making Status Extends to the Produce Aisle

And that’s berry good news for those who like blueberries inside their raspberries.

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Photo by: Christopher Polk

Christopher Polk

Has our willingness to let entertainers influence our food choices gone too far? We may well ask.

Back in December, Justin Timberlake posted a video on Instagram in which, amidst a sonic background of encouraging giggles and guffaws, he reaches for some fruit with a spoon.

"I’ll show you: You’ve got the raspberry. You’ve got the blueberry, right?" the multitalented musician says, swiftly tucking one fruit within the other. "Is it a coincidence that the blueberry fits in the raspberry perfectly? I think not. Braspberry."

The video, which has racked up just shy of 5 million views in the five months since it was posted, is gently humorous, a sweet bit of backstage, bowl-foraging intimacy with the Man of the Woods.

And if Timberlake’s fresh-fruit demo inspired a spate of DIY berry-within-berry combining and then left it at that, that would be one thing. But, perhaps all too predictably, the braspberry fervor did not stop there.

What happened was this: The beverage company Bai featured Timberlake and his "braspberry" preoccupation in an ad for its "antioxidant infusion drinks."

"This just in: Bai has five calories and no artificial sweeteners," says a pitchman seated at a news desk.

"And this Justin," he says as the camera broadens out to find a berry-tinkering Timberlake, "keeps putting blueberries inside of raspberries."

Cute. But, alas, the world was not done paying tribute to Timberlake and his berry clever innovation.

Because the berry company Driscoll’s is getting in on the moment by going to market (and social media) with real "handpicked, handstuffed" braspberries of its own.

The fruit company posted an image of its newly clamshelled berry-inside-berry product (the hashtag #braspberries right on the packaging) on Instagram along with the following caption: "New berry launch! Fresh from the farm, #braspberries are an out of this world flavor combination! @justintimberlake, be on the lookout in a grocery store near you. 😉 #finestberries #newproduct #newproductalert"

Will the stunt fruit combos really be shipped to stores? Apparently so.

"We’re going to be doing braspberry product deliveries for those engaged in the conversation online through social media and influencers," Driscoll’s Director of Marketing and Global Brand Lead Frances Dillard confirmed to the produce industry news site AndNowUKnow. "Justin Timberlake has created the #braspberry craze, and it was logical that the berry market leader would innovate the opportunity."

Logical may not be quite the word. Shrewdly opportunistic, maybe?

Dillard has promised "one or two more teases" to promote Driscoll’s "braspberry" effort.

"We are going to have some fun riding this wave that Justin Timberlake has created," she said.

Somehow, we can’t stop the feeling that we haven’t heard the end of this whole braspberry phenomenon …

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