Skittles gives a dam about Canada Day

Have you locked down your Canada Day plans yet? If not, you're in luck: Skittles will be hosting live webcam footage of a man…dressed in a beaver costume…building a dam. Yes, you read that right. In celebration of Canada's 151st birthday on Sunday, July 1, Skittles is partnering with the David Suzuki Foundation, a Canadian environmental group, to raise awareness of the country's national animal and its habitat. The candy company plans to donate $10,000 to the foundation in 2018, with each live feed view contributing to the donation. "Our playful celebration of Canada's birthday is Skittles' way of asking Canadians to join us in lending our support," says Diana Frost, VP of marketing at Mars Wrigley Confectionery Canada. Adding to the celebration is the release of limited edition New Skittles Red-and-White Mix in flavors like watermelon, white grape, peach and cherry. They'll be available at retailers across Canada at a suggested price of $3.59, with the words "Oh Canada" on the packaging. But back to that beaver—starting at 1:51 p.m. EST (a nod to the country's birthday), viewers can get in on the dam action at skittlesgiveadam.ca. "Skittles delights fans with the unexpected," Frost says. "We mixed a little patriotism with a love for Canada's environment to create this idea of paying tribute to Canada's national animal." Here's hoping the launch of its Canada Day-themed candy will go over better than the last time it introduced a specialty version. Last summer, Skittles announced it was "giving up" its rainbow and turning its candies and packaging white to celebrate LGBTQ pride. While some saw the move as positive, others saw it as whitewashing or attempting to capitalize on the movement. Skittles is betting that viewers will tune into its video stream on Sunday if they give a dam about the environment (or if they just want to see a guy parading around the forest in a beaver fursuit).

Skittles gives a dam about Canada Day

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