Oreos make it to all seven continents

Antarctica – The Oreo cookie brand has capped off its 100th birthday year with a trip down south.

Oreo surprised scientists living at Palmer Station in the Antarctic Peninsula with a delivery of 5,000 Oreo cookies and the brand donated Antarctica’s first solar-powered Penguin Cam.

The trip was made possible with the help of the philanthropy arm of Abercrombie & Kent, an adventure-travel company.

The camera Oreo delivered will enable scientists and the world to observe penguins (through live-streaming on the Internet) in their natural habitat, says MediaPost.com.

The gifts were presented by the Oreo Man character and accepted on behalf of Antarctica’s “residents” by James McClintock, endowed professor of polar and marine biology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

For Oreo, now part of Mondelez International, the trip represents the literal fulfillment of its declared birthday mission to help “everyone, everywhere” – those on all seven continents – “celebrate the kid inside” by enjoying Oreos, Oreo senior associate brand manager Danielle Brown told MediaPost.com.

The scientists are “excited” at the prospect of being able to learn more about penguin behaviour, adds MediaPost.com, and share that learning with others through the donated camera. The plan calls for having the camera up and running in January, reports Brown.

Oreo, not surprisingly says MediaPost.com, isn’t revealing how much the camera and the event as a whole are costing the brand.

“The monetary investment isn’t as important as the legacy that the Penguin Cam will leave, providing students and adults around the world for years to come the chance to experience special moments as they watch Antarctica’s true residents – the penguins – in their natural habitat,” says Brown.

McClintock, in a release about the event, noted that “having a chance to enjoy an Oreo cookie and a glass of milk is like having a little piece of home here in the station.” (No details provided as to how accessible milk is on the Antarctic Peninsula, says MediaPost.com.)

Oreo’s other anniversary initiatives included its much-covered “Daily Twist” campaign, in which the brand released a different image variation of an Oreo every day for 100 days, each designed to represent a current event or holiday/celebration.