First there was M&S’s Colin the Caterpillar. Then Aldi’s Cuthbert the Caterpillar wriggled on to shelves, along with a trademark lawsuit that briefly turned a chocolate sponge roll into one of Britain’s most talked-about legal battles.
Now, Lidl has decided it wants a slice of the action, too, launching its very own caterpillar cake, Cooper.
May the Instagram wars commence!
And, in a bid to win us over from the start, some shoppers will be able to get one completely free.
Meet Cooper the Caterpillar
Available in Lidl stores from 19 June (that’s this Friday), Cooper the Caterpillar costs £6.99 – matching Aldi’s Cuthbert and undercutting M&S’s £9.50 Colin.
It’s made with a chocolate sponge roll filled with chocolate buttercream and coated in milk chocolate. He also comes sporting a Lidl-branded chocolate bucket hat, because apparently even caterpillars aren’t immune to festival fashion.
But Lidl isn’t just launching a cake. It’s also created a free limited-edition book called The Very Late Caterpillar, which jokingly explains why Cooper has taken so long to join the supermarket caterpillar cake lineup.
According to Lidl, Cooper has spent recent years doing everything except appearing on supermarket shelves – from strutting down the London Fashion Week cat(erpillar)walk to embracing ‘gnat summer’ and binge-watching Midgerton.
How to get Lidl’s caterpillar cake for free
From 19 June, shoppers can visit LidlsLateCaterpillar.co.uk to enter Lidl’s giveaway for one of 250 copies of The Very Late Caterpillar.
Those lucky enough to get their hands on a book will also receive a Lidl Plus voucher code that can be redeemed for a free Cooper the Caterpillar cake in-store.
Given Britain’s longstanding obsession with caterpillar cakes, we’d expect the giveaway to disappear faster than the chocolate face on these cakes at a kid’s birthday party.
Whether you’re Team Colin, Team Cuthbert or ready to pledge your allegiance to Team Cooper remains to be seen. But one thing’s certain: Britain’s most entertaining supermarket rivalry isn’t going anywhere.
Stacey looks after all food and drink reviews — from coffee pods and veg boxes, to natural wine and tequila. Stacey is also founder of Crummbs, where she’s written nearly 2,000 restaurant and hotel reviews since 2013. Prior to this, Stacey wrote hundreds of in-depth buying guides for the Independent, i newspaper and BBC Good Food, as well as reviewing restaurants and interviewing celebrities in her column at Balance Magazine. Stacey has also appeared in BAFTA-nominated BBC documentary Blood, Sweat & Takeaways, where she investigated South East Asia's food production industry, appearing on both Newsnight and BBC World Service to share her findings. Regularly checking out the latest restaurants, bars and product launches, Stacey also loves experimenting with recipes at home, and is a WSET-certified wine and spirits expert, with over 10 years of experience in the business. You can follow Stacey on Instagram @crummbs_uk
