Hula Hoops
A British ring-shaped potato-and-corn snack brand owned by KP Snacks.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Hula Hoops is a British savoury snack brand best known for its short, hollow, ring-shaped pieces. The product was created by KP Snacks in 1973 and became one of the company’s longstanding mass-market snack brands in the United Kingdom. Its distinctive shape is central to the brand’s identity: the hoops can be stacked on fingers, giving the product a playful point of difference beyond flavour and texture. The standard product is made from a combination of potato and corn ingredients and is sold in small individual bags, multipacks, larger sharing bags and impulse formats. The core range has included Original, Cheese & Onion, Salt & Vinegar, BBQ Beef, Roast Chicken and Smoky Bacon. Flavour availability has changed over time, with limited or discontinued varieties including Sweet Chilli, Tikka, Crisp Roulette, Tangy Cheese, Prawn Cocktail, Sour Cream & Chive, Bacon & Ketchup, Barbecue and Beef & Mustard. KP Snacks has repeatedly extended the brand beyond the original hoop. Hula Hoops Tortilla, introduced in 2008, used corn and applied the brand to tortilla-style snacks. Other extensions included larger formats such as Big O’s, Hula Hoops XL and Big Hoops; miniature, intensely flavoured Hula Hoops Shoks; home-cookable frozen Hula Hoops; the lighter puffed product Hula Hoops Puft; and the larger maize-based Flavarings. Some of these variants were short-lived, while others were used to target particular occasions, age groups or consumer preferences. The brand has primarily operated in the United Kingdom and Ireland, while also reaching selected international markets. In South Africa it has been sold under the Hula Hoops name. In Belgium, the product has been associated with Intersnack’s Chio label, following an earlier Croky-branded presence, and in France it has been sold under the Vico label. These market-specific brand arrangements reflect the wider Intersnack portfolio structure rather than a single uniform international identity. Hula Hoops is positioned as an accessible, fun and familiar packaged snack rather than a premium or specialist food. Its marketing has often emphasized the product’s unusual shape, informal eating rituals and humorous personality. The brand has also used extensions and promotional activity to remain relevant across children, teenagers, families and adult impulse-snack consumers. A notable charitable activation in 2010 involved Sport Relief and mass hula-hooping events. The brand remains active as part of KP Snacks, which is owned by the German snack group Intersnack. Its continuing presence is supported by a recognizable core product, frequent flavour rotation, multiple pack sizes and periodic innovation in texture, shape and format.
History
Hula Hoops was created in 1973 by KP Snacks in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. From the beginning, the product differed from conventional crisps through its compact hollow-cylinder shape. The ring form gave the snack a recognizable visual identity and encouraged playful consumption, including placing hoops over fingers. The core recipe used potato and corn ingredients and was developed as an everyday packaged savoury snack for the British market. Over subsequent decades, Hula Hoops established a broad flavour portfolio. Original, Cheese & Onion, Salt & Vinegar, BBQ Beef, Roast Chicken and Smoky Bacon became important parts of the continuing range, while other flavours were introduced temporarily for promotions, experimentation or limited commercial runs. This rotation allowed KP Snacks to preserve the familiar core product while testing new flavour profiles. The brand also developed numerous format extensions. In 1998, KP introduced Big O’s, a larger version promoted with comedians Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse appearing as the Self-Righteous Brothers. Big O’s were sold in large bags and were associated with Beef & Mustard. A further oversized format, Hula Hoops XL, followed in 2001 but was withdrawn after poor sales. In the early 2000s, Hula Hoops Shoks presented miniature hoops in cube or pot packaging and used stronger flavours to target younger consumers. In 2008, KP introduced Hula Hoops Tortilla, a corn-based extension offered in flavours including Cool Original, Chilli Salsa and Nacho Cheese. The extension broadened the brand’s texture and ingredient base while retaining the Hula Hoops name. Frozen Hula Hoops were developed in the late 1990s as a home-cookable product resembling a potato side dish rather than a conventional crisp. A further frozen version returned in 2013 through Iceland stores, with Original Salted and BBQ Beef variants reported in the range. The oversized concept returned in 2011 through Big Hoops. These products were marketed toward adults who remembered putting standard hoops on their fingers but wanted a larger format. Big Hoops appeared in several flavours and pack sizes, including price-marked and grab-bag formats, although individual varieties were discontinued over time. KP continued to experiment with lighter and differently textured products. Hula Hoops Puft launched in early 2015 as a puffed, lighter-style snack. It was initially offered in a cheese flavour and later appeared in Salted, Sweet Chilli, Salt & Vinegar and Beef. In 2018, the company introduced Flavarings, larger maize-based rings with a texture closer to other extruded corn snacks than to the traditional Hula Hoops product. The brand has also been used for promotional and charitable activity. In 2010, its partnership with Sport Relief produced nationwide Hoopathons and a reported simultaneous hooping record involving 1,388 participants. Humorous advertising and the physical playability of the product have remained important elements of its public identity. Hula Hoops is owned within the KP Snacks business, which forms part of the Intersnack Group. It continues to be sold principally in Britain and Ireland, with additional market presence in South Africa and selected European countries. In Belgium, related products have appeared under Intersnack’s Chio label and previously under Croky, while France has used the Vico brand. The brand’s continuing strategy combines a stable core range with changing flavours, pack formats and adjacent snack concepts.
- 2018
Flavarings launched
[1]The brand added larger maize-based rings marketed as Flavarings.
- 2015
Puft launched
[1]Hula Hoops Puft introduced a puffed, lighter-style product format.
- 2013
Frozen range returns
[1]Frozen Hula Hoops returned through Iceland stores as part of a frozen crisp-style range.
- 2011
Big Hoops introduced
[1]A new oversized format was launched as a successor to Hula Hoops XL.
- 2010
Sport Relief Hoopathons held
[1]The brand supported a mass hooping activity that reportedly involved 1,388 participants and set a simultaneous hooping record.
- 2008
Tortilla extension launched
[1]Hula Hoops Tortilla extended the brand into corn-based tortilla snacks.
- 2002
Hula Hoops Shoks introduced
[1]KP announced miniature, strongly flavoured hoops in cube and resealable-pot packaging, aimed particularly at consumers aged 12 to 24.
- 2001
Hula Hoops XL launched
[1]An oversized Hula Hoops variant was introduced but later discontinued after weak sales.
- 1999
Frozen Hula Hoops developed
[1]KP produced a home-cookable frozen product inspired by the Hula Hoops shape but distinct from the crisp snack.
- 1998
Big O’s introduced
[1]KP launched a larger Hula Hoops format called Big O’s, supported by advertising featuring Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse.
Products and positioning
Mass-market, playful and familiar savoury snacking with a distinctive ring shape.
Potato-and-corn snack · 1973
Core Hula Hoops
The original Hula Hoops format consists of short, hollow rings made from potato and corn ingredients. It is sold in individual bags, multipacks, sharing bags and impulse formats. Core flavours have included Original, Cheese & Onion, Salt & Vinegar, BBQ Beef, Roast Chicken and Smoky Bacon, with availability varying by period and market.
Corn tortilla snack · 2008
Hula Hoops Tortilla
Introduced as a corn-based extension, Hula Hoops Tortilla applied the brand name to a tortilla-style snack rather than the standard potato-and-corn hoop. Reported flavours included Cool Original, Chilli Salsa and Nacho Cheese.
Oversized ring snack · 1998
Big O’s
Big O’s were larger-than-standard Hula Hoops launched in 1998. They used larger bags and were associated with Beef & Mustard. The product was promoted through a campaign featuring Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse as the Self-Righteous Brothers.
Oversized ring snack · 2001
Hula Hoops XL
Hula Hoops XL was an oversized format launched in 2001 in flavours including Beef & Mustard, Chilli, Nacho Cheese and Curry. Its sales were reportedly disappointing, and the product was withdrawn.
Miniature snack · 2002
Hula Hoops Shoks
Shoks were miniature Hula Hoops designed with more intense flavouring than the standard product. They were sold in stiff cube-style packs or small resealable pots and included flavours such as Totally Cheesy, Beef, Pickled Onion, Sweet Chilli, Salt and Vinegar, and Rib and Saucy.
Frozen potato snack · 1999
Frozen Hula Hoops
Frozen Hula Hoops were designed for preparation at home and were closer to hash-brown or frozen potato products than to an ambient crisp. The range was produced in the late 1990s and later revived for Iceland stores, with Original Salted and BBQ Beef variants reported.
Oversized ring snack · 2011
Big Hoops
Big Hoops were introduced in 2011 as a successor to XL. Their larger size was intended to appeal to adults who remembered placing regular Hula Hoops over their fingers. Reported flavours included Salted, BBQ Beef, Salt & Vinegar, Spicy Chilli, Sour Cream & Chive and Sweet Chilli, with some later discontinued.
Puffed snack · 2015
Hula Hoops Puft
Puft is a lighter-style, puffed version described on packaging as light and crispy puffed hoops. It was first introduced in a small handy pack and later appeared in Salted, Sweet Chilli, Salt & Vinegar and Beef flavours.
Maize-based ring snack · 2018
Hula Hoops Flavarings
Flavarings are larger maize-based rings with a texture different from the traditional Hula Hoops product. They have been described as big crispy bursts of flavour and have been offered in Tangy Cheese, Salt & Vinegar and Spicy variants.
Marketing campaigns
- 2010Hoopathons
United Kingdom
Hula Hoops partnered with Sport Relief for mass hula-hooping events held on 21 March. The activation reportedly brought together 1,388 participants and achieved a Guinness World Record for simultaneous hooping across the United Kingdom.
Outcome. The activity generated a reported record and linked the brand to a national charity campaign.
- 1998Big O’s advertising campaign
United Kingdom
Big O’s advertising featured comedians Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse in their Self-Righteous Brothers characters, using comedy to distinguish the oversized product from standard Hula Hoops.
Outcome. The Big O’s product was later discontinued.
Brand decisions
2018
Add maize-based FlavaringsProduct launchBackground
The brand continued to experiment with ring size, ingredient composition and texture.
Action taken
KP introduced Flavarings as larger maize-based rings in flavours including Tangy Cheese, Salt & Vinegar and Spicy.
Aftermath
Flavarings became a documented extension of the Hula Hoops portfolio, although current availability is not confirmed here.
2015
Introduce a lighter puffed formatProduct launchBackground
KP sought to broaden Hula Hoops beyond its traditional fried ring format and address demand for a lighter-style snack.
Action taken
The company launched Hula Hoops Puft, initially as a cheese-flavoured handy-pack product.
Aftermath
Additional flavours including Salted, Sweet Chilli, Salt & Vinegar and Beef were subsequently reported.
2011
Replace the XL concept with Big HoopsGeneration changeBackground
After the earlier Hula Hoops XL format was withdrawn, KP revisited the oversized-ring concept.
Action taken
KP launched Big Hoops, positioning the larger format toward adults familiar with the original finger-stacking ritual.
Aftermath
Big Hoops appeared in multiple flavours and pack sizes, with some variants later discontinued.
2008
Extend the brand into tortilla snacksProduct launchBackground
KP used the established Hula Hoops name to enter a corn-based tortilla segment and offer a different texture from the core product.
Action taken
The company launched Hula Hoops Tortilla in Cool Original, Chilli Salsa and Nacho Cheese variants.
Aftermath
The extension is documented as part of the brand’s wider history, although its current market status is not established here.
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