Tropicana Created a Toothpaste That Doesn't Make Orange Juice Taste Horrible

There’s something about mint toothpaste and orange juice that doesn’t mix. It’s sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), an ingredient that helps clean teeth but makes orange juice taste like you’ve done something worth apologizing for. The epitome of leaving a bad taste in your mouth.

Tropicana even conducted a survey with Wakefield Research to confirm this, with 78 percent of respondents agreeing that toothpaste ruins the citrusy taste of orange juice. (Who are the other 22 percent and what’s wrong with their taste buds?)

This led Tropicana to create a limited-edition toothpaste—with help from Dynamic Blending Specialists—that’s free of SLS so consumers can have their OJ and proper hygiene, too.

“It’s an age-old truth that brushing your teeth with toothpaste makes orange juice taste terrible, but it’s become a cultural phenomenon recently with more than 20,000 social posts popping up on the topic in just the past year,” Anup Shah, CMO of juice brands at PepsiCo Beverages North America, tells Muse. “We saw all these real, funny ways people would describe the taste—from battery acid to crayons—and issued a consumer survey to learn more.” 

Timed to National Brush Day on Nov. 1, Tropicana invited consumers to comment on Instagram through Nov. 4 for a chance at scoring a tube.

The brand and its agency, Cramer-Krasselt, also created a video that references actual tweets about the nasty experience of brushing then juicing, comparing the taste to crayons, battery acid—even floor. 

“We’re always looking for ways to make mornings brighter, but we only created a limited quantity of Tropicana Toothpaste, so once they are spoken for, we’ll stay focused on what we do best,” says Shah.

For those looking to go further down the rabbit hole of why toothpaste doesn’t play well with OJ, Colgate has an entire page on its website dedicated to it.

CREDITS

Brand: Tropicana 

Creative AOR:  Cramer-Krasselt, Chicago
SVP, Executive Creative Director:  Andrew Meyer
VP, Group Creative Director:  Amy Gozalka
Associate Creative Director: Jeremy Adams
VP, Lead Designer: Sangbum Kim
SVP, Group Account Director: Tiffany Williams
Account Supervisor: Cassie Joyce
Line Producer: Tom Cronin
Content Producer: Stuart Ashner
SVP, Executive Dir of PR/Social: Mary Gura
PR/Social Director: Dan Stepanian-Bennett
Account Executive: Anna Tripp
VP, Campaign Manager: Audrey Williams

Production Company: The Barkers
Director: Chris Barker & Kristen Barker
Line Producer: Karen Carter
Editor: Michael Fernandez 

Audio: Another Country
Engineer: John Binder 
Assistant Engineer: Josh Hunnicutt 
Producer: Louise Rider 

Public Relations AOR: MullenLowe PR
VP, Account Director: Colin Brown
Account Director: Maddy Sheffer
Account Supervisor: Julia Chamberlin
Account Supervisor: Adriana Geday
Senior Account Executive: Alyssa Kanter
Account Executive: Juliet Stein
Assistant Account Executive: San’Tres Broussard
Assistant Account Executive: Derrick Sanders

Media AOR: OMD
Planning Director: Sarah Simpson
Manager: Amanda Carlson
Digital Director: Alex Schrieber 
Senior Associate: Kristen Stankus