Storm Chips are here as New Brunswick's Covered Bridge reveals new flavour

A New Brunswick chip company is cashing in on a social media trend started right here in the Nova Scotia newsroom of the CBC.

Covered Bridge Potato Chips unveiled their latest flavour this week: "Storm chips" aren't just one flavour but a "flurry of flavours" in one delicious bag. 

Here's how it all began:

On a cold and stormy January day in 2014, Mainstreet host Stephanie Domet mused to newsreader Ryan Pierce that on her list of things to get at the grocery store in advance of the storm were ripple chips and dip.

In fact, those two items constituted the entirety of her list. Pierce admitted his own list was similar and #stormchips became a thing.

Jaime Nevers, marketing manager for Covered Bridge, says the business took note and developed the idea last winter.

"We didn't use a hashtag on our packaging but that's where the generic idea came from for it," she said. "We had customers writing in making the suggestion to us on occasion. Obviously the social media aspect was a big thing as well."

Strategic timing

She said the company's sales did well during last winter's bouts of bad weather and they wanted to be prepared for this year.

The chips feature four existing flavours — barbecue, ketchup, dill and sea salt and vinegar —  all together in some winter-themed packaging. 

As for the timing? Well it's no accident they're available just when there's a noticeable chill in the air. 

"It was definitely important for us to get it out there before any major winter weather hit so people were familiar with our products," said Nevers. 

The company says they plan to distribute 10,000 bags from the first run of production and will be expanding distribution from a few Sobeys stores to the range of outlets where their chips are sold in the region. 

Staff at a Dartmouth Sobeys say their storm chips display went up Monday afternoon and they've been selling very quickly.

By Tuesday morning all the available storm chips at the store were on display. Some customers even stopped to take photos.

Storm chips aren't the only Nova Scotia export the company plans to market. Covered Bridge plans to start selling donair-flavoured chips next spring.