(NEWSnet) – It was a bit of a tradition in Florida for Publix grocery customers to order, purchase or take pictures of hurricane icons showcased atop bakery cakes during hurricane season.

Photos of the “hurricane cake” or “hurricake” designs as shown on social media typically showed blue, green, white and other colors of frosting depicting the ocean, shoreline and storm clouds.

 

But no more.

The supermarket chain formally announced last year the idea is not part of its official cake design rotation. Given the surge in chatter on newsroom Facebook pages this week in Florida, it appears some of the grocery customers are just now finding out about the policy.

Hundreds of people have commented on, reacted to, or shared an article by WESH 2 News in Orlando, Fla., which explained the situation Aug. 22 with this introduction on Facebook: “It's the end of “hurricakes."

The News-Press newspaper in Fort Myers, Fla., explained in an Aug. 17 article that photos of hurricane-themed cake designs seem to have started in 2019 with a photo taken of a Florida bakery shelf showing swirling frosting cake tops and white icing messages of “Go away!”

But as Hurricane Ian approached in September 2022, Publix made an announcement that customers should not expect such designs. Ian was a category 5 storm when it hit Cuba and Florida, causing widespread destruction and some fatalities before moving into South Carolina and North Carolina as a category 1 storm.

“It is our company policy to not produce bakery cakes that would make light of a natural disaster,” the statement said. “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,” said a statement on the company’s website, posted before Ian made landfall.

Publix is a popular grocery chain in the southeast with 1,300 store locations in several states.

Copyright 2023 NEWSnet. All rights reserved.