Let’s Talk About National Pie Day 2024
The Romans loved it, and Egyptians were even buried with it – get ready for January 23rd – it’s National Pie Day.
It’s pie not pi…
Before diving into a world of pie-related facts, histories and marketing potential, let’s clear one thing up – January 23rd – aka National Pie Day, bears no relation to the later date of 14th March, which is Pi Day. The latter is mathematically focused, although actual pies do still crop up from time to time, but the former, 23rd Jan is exclusively a holiday all about celebrating the wonders of physical, edible pie.
The celebration began during the mid 1970s, and was started by a nuclear engineer, brewer and teacher from Colorado, USA who, for reasons unknown (assumedly a love of pie…), decided to declare his own birthday – 23rdJan- National Pie Day. From 1986 onwards, the day became sponsored by the American Pie Council with the aim being to promote and support the pie industry.
Another noteworthy point is that there is infact a whole week dedicated to pie in the UK. British Pie Week takes place annually in March and can sometimes overshadow the American national holiday, however, it’s definitely worth taking advantage of the two.
What’s so special about pie?
Pie comes in so many variations, both sweet and savoury. Heated debates even break out over what actually constitutes a pie, for example, if it has no pastry base but does have a lid, is it a pie? If it has a pastry case with a filling but no lid, is it a pie? And how do we distinguish between a pie and a tart? The answer is… there are no definitive answers, but that’s part of the beauty. Such a diverse dish means that the possibilities when it comes to adaptation and innovation are near endless.
Clearly people have agreed throughout history, as there’s evidence of the Romans having feasted on pie, and even Egyptian royalty being buried alongside pie-type dishes to take through to the afterlife. For a long time though, it seems that the actual pie crust was simply a vehicle for the filling, and didn’t necessarily get eaten.
Nowadays, the art of producing the perfect pie crust is a competitive one, and the American Pie Council holds annual national championships for both amateur and professional pie bakers.
Pie Day in the Media
The American Pie Council work with a range of individuals and organisations to help promote products and work within the industry, and back in 2014, they ran a major publicity campaign working alongside Paramount Pictures to promote the film Labor Day, a romantic thriller starring Kate Winslet. One of the main promotional posters featured a key pie-baking scene in the film, and the film’s release date came within a few days of National Pie Day.
More recently, the hugely successful Broadway, and now West End musical Waitress also used National Pie Day to upload quirky posts on their social media accounts. The musical tells the story of a young woman with a talent for pie baking who finds herself in a tricky situation (we won’t give away any more!), and the musical’s UK Instagram account posted a zodiac pie chart, featuring a different pie referenced in the musical for each star sign, so followers could find out what their personal ‘pie sign’ would be.
As ever, social media is one of the primary tools used to promote awareness days such as these, and there were a number of pie day campaigns run by smaller businesses featuring novelty pie-shaped bags, t-shirts and even badges to wear to display your pie pride.
How can you get involved?
Devising promotional material doesn’t necessarily demand significant amounts of time and money. Pie day is a great opportunity to share facts, pre-existing product ranges, and recipes. Even using simple social media hashtags (#nationalpieday) is an effortless way to connect with social media users enthused by the cause. Running competitions or quizzes are another logical step, taking your campaign material from passive to interactive, really engaging your audience.
Food producers should consider whether there are specific ingredients they could promote alongside recipes, for example butchers promoting their beef for a steak and ale pie, and homeware departments promoting baking receptacles and appliances in accordance with the celebratory day.
An alternate take would be to focus on the ‘American-ness’ of pies and pie day, creating a range of US menu specials such as apple, pumpkin, key lime or pecan pies, or even simply use the day’s US origins to market American-related products and experiences.
A British and American staple
So the concept of pie – a hot filling-pastry case combo has been both a British and American staple for as long as we can remember. Whether it’s steak and kidney, chicken and mushroom, or sweet and tangy apple, the humble pie, and its celebration day on January 23rd is a sure fire way to connect with foodies. Generate publicity for your cause by playing into the patriotic sentiments that this quintessentially British and American hearty dish can generate. As is often the case with food awareness days, you don’t have to stem from the food industry to participate. Think novelty products, American- and British-focused promotional material, and general pie-related fun to get yourselves trending across digital platforms this coming January.
Written by Mary Dulwich
