BuzzFeed brand Tasty is cooking at Walmart

Walmart and Tasty, a social food network owned by BuzzFeed, have launched a 90 SKU line of cookware in stores and online.

The deal is said to be the cornerstone of a broader strategic partnership involving creative development of a wide range of consumer products, experimentation and innovation in e-commerce, media and marketing. Last December, Walmart and BuzzFeed partnered to include links in Tasty videos to buy kitchen tools, groceries and other accessories on Walmart.com and Jet.com. The deal gives Walmart exposure to Tasty’s large audience of more than 92 million Facebook fans. Tasty said its 2,700 recipe videos have 73 billion lifetime views and it reaches 540 million people each month.

(Learn more about Tasty at the Path to Purchase Summit March 12-14. Check out the agenda and register by clicking here.)

“Walmart’s focus on saving customers so they can live better lines up perfectly with Tasty’s mission of making cooking fun and accessible for beginner and experienced cooks alike,” said Ben Kaufman, Head of BuzzFeed Commerce, a business unit created in October 2016 to launch physical products. “We’re excited to unveil Tasty’s first cookware line with one of the biggest and most innovative retailers in the world, and make it even easier for Tasty fans to prepare our delicious recipes in their own homes.”

The deal marks new territory for Walmart which has traditionally sought to cash in on the popularity of celebrity chefs such as Emeril Lagasse, Wolfgang Puck, Paula Deen, Rachel Ray and others.

“We are excited to partner with BuzzFeed Tasty to give home cooks a whole new way to get in the kitchen with the brand – a new line of Tasty cookware,” said Steve Ronchetto, Vice President, Cook and Dine, Walmart U.S. “Like Tasty viewers, our customers are looking for inspiration and want to have a little fun in the kitchen. Through our unique partnership, we’re making it easier than ever to do that. Customers can now shop for all of the items featured in a recipe on the Tasty app through Walmart and prepare a delicious meal using our new Tasty cookware.”