Publix bakeries stop selling hurricane cakes after Ianâs devastation

The 2023 Atlantic hurricane season is heating up. Look at all those storms and disturbances out there.

We have until Nov. 30 to stay on high alert, keep tabs on the weather and know the location of famed stormchaser Jim Cantore at all times.

If a hurricane of any magnitude does hit (fingers crossed), one item you won’t see at your local Publix is a cake celebrating the storm.

Once party staples for those hunkering down while putting up their shutters, the colorfully frosted desserts sold at some of the supermarkets’ bakeries are now a thing of the past.

The so called hurricane-themed cakes were conversation starters, for sure. Many of them were topped with ominous radar images or a telltale swirl with a colorful eye. A giant chocolate chip cookie pie carried the phrase, “Leave Florida Alone.”

Though many appreciated the gallows humor, others (especially those who have lost homes) found the cakes, well, distasteful.

Last September, as Hurricane Ian was approaching Southwest Florida as a dangerous Category 4, Publix spokeswoman Lindsey Willis told the Miami Herald that it was “company policy to not produce bakery cakes that would make light of a natural disaster.”

Ian killed more than 150 people.

She added that any Publix bakery that sold or displayed such a cake would be sent a reminder not to do so:

“Our priority remains taking care of our customers, associates and communities.”