Publix Ditches Hurricane Cakes for Making Light of 'Natural Disaster'

Grocery store chain Publix has announced it will no longer be making its famous hurricane-themed cakes.

As Florida approaches its often chaotic peak of hurricane season, the supermarket chain, headquartered in Florida where hurricanes are frequent, would regularly sell cakes with frosting designed to look like weather graphics produced by the National Hurricane Center. One post on X, formerly known as Twitter, by user @arcanegold from December 2022 shows the cakes with text on them reading "Leave Florida Alone" and "Go Away." As well as cakes, the chain would bake other sweet goods like giant cookies decorated with hurricane maps.

However, the chain has announced that its Florida stores will no longer sell the items. The company said in a statement given to local news station WKMG in Orlando on Friday that despite the joy the cakes bring to some customers, it did not want to downplay the devastating effects of natural disasters.

"Our associates make every effort to support our customers during weather events. Oftentimes, this includes finding ways to delight them with their favorite Publix items as they prepare for uncertainty. For these requests in particular, it is our company policy to not produce bakery cakes that would make light of a natural disaster. We have sent communications to our stores reminding them of our policy. We regret if a store has not followed policy, and we are working to rectify the situation," Publix's statement says.

Newsweek has reached out to Publix for additional comment.

The news comes as the first anniversary of Hurricane Ian approaches. The deadly storm killed 156 people across the United States, 70 of whom were in Florida, and caused $109 billion worth of damage, Sky News reported earlier this year. The hurricane achieved peak Category 5 status before downgrading to a Category 4 storm, making it among the most formidable tropical storms in recorded history. Wind speeds of approximately 161 miles per hour were documented off the coast, with land speeds of 150 mph recorded in Florida.

Meanwhile, Publix's decision to withdraw the cakes has caused a mixed reaction on social media. X user @John_G_Mellor wrote: "Let's pretend that people are offended by a cake so we can also pretend we're doing a good thing. Create an issue then act like you fixed an issue is pathetic."

Another user, @mattyv29, wrote: "What's more 'Florida' than hurricanes or gators? Not sure why they are getting sensitive over this."