The People's Chip
Encyclopedia
The People's Chip is a potato chip
flavour discovered and advocated by Australia
n radio comedy duo Hamish & Andy
. The flavour is gravy
, derived from roast beef
. 60,495 packets of the chips were manufactured by The Smith's Snackfood Company
and given away in a promotional exercise. Retail chip packets of this flavour were manufactured and went on sale on 11 August 2008 in Australia for a trial period of two weeks.
: Whether the existence of the flavouring known as "Light 'n' Tangy" preceded the manufacture of the chip of this flavour, or whether the flavour was spliced together from the putative flavours 'Light' and 'Tangy' especially for this chip, and the combined flavour "Light 'n' Tangy" was thereby created.
A representative of Smith's telephoned the show to attempt to answer the question, and it emerged in the course of the conversation that it was entirely possible to create a customized potato chip flavour.
The wide range of flavours being discussed caused Hamish to believe that it could be possible to mix all known flavours together to make one flavour, referred to as 'The Everything Chip'. Andy believed that this would be a terrible idea. To prove it, he created a blend of the most popular flavours, and invited Hamish to consume it, whereupon Hamish experienced revulsion and agreed that The Lot is a terrible flavour.
Over 40,000 votes were cast as to which should be the winning flavour. 'Gravy' became the clear winner.
The three flavours brought to Hamish and Andy were:
Mick Lee's Roast Beef became the chip flavour to be produced for the show.
much to Hamish & Andy's disapproval. Smiths then announced they would manufacture 60,000 more packets to be distributed free of charge across the country by outlets picked by Hamish & Andy. These chips were released on 27 June. Melbourne and Adelaide ran out of chips within the day, and Canberra within the hour.
Following the success of the distribution of 60,000 gravy chip packets, Hamish and Andy announced on 7 July that Smiths had agreed to sell The People's Chip in stores across Australia for two weeks beginning 11 August. The announcement came after much hate (or, as Hamish described it, "passion") mail the duo received from fans who were unable to secure a packet on 27 June. The 500,000 bags that were released by Smiths around Coles and Woolworths stores on 11 August were quick to sell out, and not at all coming close to the two weeks that Smiths believed they would last throughout stores.
Potato chip
Potato chips are thin slices of potato that are deep fried...
flavour discovered and advocated by Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n radio comedy duo Hamish & Andy
Hamish & Andy
Hamish & Andy are an Australian comedy duo formed in 2003 by Hamish Blake and Andy Lee. They currently host the radio program The Hamish & Andy Show which airs in Australia on the Today Network....
. The flavour is gravy
Gravy
Gravy is a sauce made often from the juices that run naturally from meat or vegetables during cooking. In North America the term can refer to a wider variety of sauces and gravy is often thicker than in Britain...
, derived from roast beef
Roast beef
Roast beef is a dish of beef which is roasted in an oven. Essentially prepared as a main meal, the leftovers can be and are often served within sandwiches and sometimes is used to make hash...
. 60,495 packets of the chips were manufactured by The Smith's Snackfood Company
The Smith's Snackfood Company
The Smith's Snackfood Company is a company best known for producing and selling a range of snack food such as crisps. It is now owned by New York based company PepsiCo.-Smiths in the UK:...
and given away in a promotional exercise. Retail chip packets of this flavour were manufactured and went on sale on 11 August 2008 in Australia for a trial period of two weeks.
History
The invention of this flavour started with a tongue-in-cheek question asked by the duo of the listeners to their radio showHamish & Andy (radio show)
The Hamish & Andy Show , is an Australian radio show created by and starring comedic duo Hamish Blake & Andy Lee. It was broadcast on the Today Network to every state in Australia as well as the ACT for two hours in the key weekday afternoon drivetime slot. Since December 3, 2010, it has moved to...
: Whether the existence of the flavouring known as "Light 'n' Tangy" preceded the manufacture of the chip of this flavour, or whether the flavour was spliced together from the putative flavours 'Light' and 'Tangy' especially for this chip, and the combined flavour "Light 'n' Tangy" was thereby created.
A representative of Smith's telephoned the show to attempt to answer the question, and it emerged in the course of the conversation that it was entirely possible to create a customized potato chip flavour.
Candidate flavours
Hamish & Andy then asked their listeners to offer up suggestions for the chip flavour they would like created. Some of the rejected candidates included:- 'The taste of victory'
- Pineapple and lime
- Hot chips
- Peanut
- Tomato sauce
- Solo flavour
- Tuna
- Doughnut
- Avocado
- Strawberries and cream
- Pizza
- Hamburger
The wide range of flavours being discussed caused Hamish to believe that it could be possible to mix all known flavours together to make one flavour, referred to as 'The Everything Chip'. Andy believed that this would be a terrible idea. To prove it, he created a blend of the most popular flavours, and invited Hamish to consume it, whereupon Hamish experienced revulsion and agreed that The Lot is a terrible flavour.
The top six candidate flavours
A selection of six flavours were selected by popular demand to make the shortlist for the online poll which featured:- Pork Dumpling
- Gravy
- Kebab (or Souvlaki)
- Beer
- Chocolate
- Fruit Salad
Over 40,000 votes were cast as to which should be the winning flavour. 'Gravy' became the clear winner.
The final three flavours
By May 2008, Smith's had created three candidates for the exact flavour of the gravy chip. Hamish & Andy were required to select one for production.The three flavours brought to Hamish and Andy were:
- The Chip Shop - An original style gravy flavour based on the flavour of hot chips from a typical takeaway
- Mick Lee's Roast Beef - A strong beef gravy flavour described as a "gravy punch". This flavour was created from a recipe held by Andy's father. In Hamish's words : "The taste that punches you in the tongue and orders you to enjoy it"
- Moosie's Gourmet - A gourmet style of gravy with onion and vegetable flavouring, created from a recipe put forth by Hamish's grandmother (who is known as 'Moosie')
Mick Lee's Roast Beef became the chip flavour to be produced for the show.
Manufacture and distribution
Initially, 495 packets were manufactured, with 99 packets delivered to each mainland state. Some fans slept out overnight to obtain the chips. Some recipients sold theirs on EbayEBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
much to Hamish & Andy's disapproval. Smiths then announced they would manufacture 60,000 more packets to be distributed free of charge across the country by outlets picked by Hamish & Andy. These chips were released on 27 June. Melbourne and Adelaide ran out of chips within the day, and Canberra within the hour.
Following the success of the distribution of 60,000 gravy chip packets, Hamish and Andy announced on 7 July that Smiths had agreed to sell The People's Chip in stores across Australia for two weeks beginning 11 August. The announcement came after much hate (or, as Hamish described it, "passion") mail the duo received from fans who were unable to secure a packet on 27 June. The 500,000 bags that were released by Smiths around Coles and Woolworths stores on 11 August were quick to sell out, and not at all coming close to the two weeks that Smiths believed they would last throughout stores.