You’ve probably heard of a “catfish,” a fake online identity adopted by someone who wants to deceive or scam other people. Clear ketchup was a “snack”, and Benji is the UK’s number one snack catcher. Benji’s UK Snack Attack Instagram account hosts pistachio-flavored Coco Pops, pickle-shaped Haribo, mint Coke, frozen Pringles and butter Oreos.
It all started with Rare Fantasies. In 2019, Benji and his college classmates enjoyed seeking out imported Fanta flavors and “doing a little ceremony” when trying them. From there, the computer science student became obsessed with searching for “weird” snacks, which he posted on his personal Instagram page. “I realized I should probably stop harassing my friends by posting snacks, so I changed it to his own account,” says Benji, who asked WIRED not to reveal his last name for privacy reasons.
Benji’s story was incredibly simple: he went to the stores and took pictures of new foods. “But then lockdown happened and going to the supermarket and handling food was not a good idea,” he says. So instead of caressing the food, he began to prepare it. After following an online recipe for white chocolate Nutella, Benji began making different chocolate spreads every weekend; online, he called it Spread Saturday. Benji, a self-taught photographer, also made fake labels for his creations. But one day, a company he was imitating sent him a message that basically said, “Hey, can you please say it’s not real?” We got a lot of messages asking to buy this!
And thus snackfishing was born. “In a way, I sought trick people online,” Benji admits. “I’m not going to pretend it wasn’t that.” But on Zoom, Benji isn’t even remotely a troll; He has a gentle manner, wire-rimmed glasses, and what looks like a comfortable fleece. As the world emerged from lockdown, Benji began displaying his fish snacks in stores, filming himself taking them off the shelves. At first, Benji’s friends and family were perplexed. “Are you okay? Is this normal?” But they soon joined in and his mother and grandmother invited him to afternoon tea when he reached 200,000 followers.
Nowadays, Benji adds disclosures to every post (“THESE DO NOT EXIST!”) to avoid frustrating people and stay on the right side of multinational conglomerates. It also posts “snack exclusives” about upcoming real snacks that have been leaked elsewhere online, which brands don’t like as much; some have sent you cease and desist notices.
When Benji comes up with an idea for a new snack, sometimes he completely tweaks it, but if he thinks it’s possible, he sits down and does it for real. He’s eaten Pringles dipped in Milkybar (“what store are they in,” one commenter asked) and nibbled on a Werther’s Original chocolate bar. He dreams of one day making his own fish recipe book, but the “real dream” would be for a company to bring a fish to life. “That would be cool: I came up with some silly flavor and suddenly everyone can try it.”
Ultimately, clear ketchup and lemon Nutella may never exist, and fishing as a snack probably won’t make Benji rich or famous; In reality, you have not earned any money from your account. Still, he doesn’t really care. “I don’t want it to feel like work; “I love doing it,” she says, noting that her “day is about numbers,” so creating fake foods offers a creative outlet. “For me it’s just a little hobby. As long as I have fun doing it, I’m happy.”
This article first appeared in the January/February 2025 issue of WIRED UK magazine.