Meal-kit delivery giant HelloFresh is facing backlash after publishing a Pride Month advertisement that many critics described as vulgar and unnecessarily sexual. The company, which delivers pre-portioned ingredients, recipes, and cooking instructions directly to customers, posted the ad on social media Thursday as part of its Pride Month marketing campaign. “We know that eating isn’t always a top priority this month,” the company wrote. “We respect that. But for those of you who are … prepping … we have an extensive lineup of high-fiber recipes available. Happy Pride.” The post is a reference to anal sex and preparation for sexual activity. The company further amplified the “joke” by using a suggestive promotional code from a commenter. “Use code BOTTOMSUP for a Pride Month discount,” the company wrote.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by HelloFresh (@hellofresh) The post quickly gained traction online, collecting roughly 100,000 likes on Instagram. Supporters praised the company for the statement, and the gay hookup app Grindr was among the brands that responded approvingly in the comments. But reactions elsewhere were far less favorable. The advertisement drew sharp criticism on X, where users questioned why a food company was making explicit sexual jokes as part of its Pride Month promotion. “I’ve had a Hello Fresh discount offer sitting on my counter for two months because I intended to subscribe for postpartum,” one user wrote. “It would have been a big help in our house. Now I won’t. Utterly repulsed.” I’ve had a Hello Fresh discount offer sitting on my counter for two months because I intended to subscribe for postpartum. It would have been a big help in our house. Now I won’t. Utterly repulsed. pic.twitter.com/ih8ed5hipI — Abby Libby (@abbythelibb_) June 7, 2026 Another commenter argued that the campaign crossed a line by unnecessarily sexualizing the company’s products. “It gets even grosser and pettier. There is zero reason to sexualize food. Never buying them again either,” the user wrote. “Wow @HelloFresh could you be any more crude?” another critic posted. “Fiber? Prepping? Pride? It’s not even clever. It’s just repulsive and unnecessary.” Wow @HelloFresh @HelloFreshUK could you be any more crude? Fiber? Prepping? pride? It’s not even clever. It’s just repulsive and unnecessary https://t.co/s8b979etMB — Ess Touvern (@touze31863) June 7, 2026 One user summarized the controversy more bluntly, writing that HelloFresh was posting about “how they can help you prepare for gay butt sex for pride month.” Hello Fresh posting about how they can help you prepare for gay butt sex for pride month. pic.twitter.com/uXqpROCvs6 — Woody Widenhofer, Esq. (@GhostOfWoody) June 5, 2026 This is not the first instance of HelloFresh’s social media team drawing attention for injecting politics into its marketing. In April, after President Donald Trump participated in a widely publicized McDonald DoorDash delivery to the White House, the company mocked the president on social media. “We considered dropping off a HelloFresh box at a very famous house (painted white)… but we didn’t want to overwhelm anyone with ‘step 1: preheat oven,'” the company posted. The campaign is not the first time a major food company has used sexual themes during Pride Month marketing. In 2022, the Uber-owned food delivery service Postmates launched a “bottom-friendly” Pride campaign developed with an anal surgeon that promoted specific foods for those preparing to engage in anal sex. Critics at the time argued that such campaigns reflected a growing trend of corporations moving beyond traditional rainbow-themed Pride marketing and increasingly incorporating explicit sexual references into advertising. Several commenters said the ad had convinced them to cancel subscriptions or avoid the company altogether, arguing that HelloFresh had unnecessarily injected explicit sexual content into what is ostensibly a food delivery service. Despite the blowback, HelloFresh seems to be trying to turn back the clock to a much more explicit era of Pride. At time of publishing, HelloFresh had not publicly responded to the backlash.