Sorry, Florida. No hurricane cakes from Publix as they 'make light of a natural disaster'

Attention, shoppers: Publix will not make, bake or sell hurricane cakes.

In September 2022, the Lakeland-based grocery chain came under fire after photos of hurricane-themed cakes from Publix bakeries went viral on Twitter. While social media users seemed split about the themed cakes as Ian neared Florida, the conversation prompted the chain to issue a statement.

Ian struck Southwest Florida on Sept. 28, 2022, as a major hurricane, battering the coastal communities and extending past U.S. 41 to the east and up the Caloosahatchee River for miles. Significant parts of communities along the barrier islands of Captiva, Sanibel, Pine and Fort Myers Beach were washed away by the winds and surge.

Hurricane Ian tied for the fifth-strongest hurricane ever to make landfall in the U.S., according to the National Hurricane Center, and the name Ian was retired from the list of storm names in 2023 because of the devastation and loss of life caused.

Devastating. Ian photos from "the day after" Category 5 storm made landfall across Southwest Florida

As the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Ian approaches, a check on Publix’s corporate site for communications addressed the issue of hurricane cakes. Below are things to know about hurricane cakes, Hurricane Ian and Publix.

What is a hurricane cake?

Familiar with birthday cakes? There's a confectionary theme to observe when a hurricane is approaching. Instead of "Happy Birthday" or "Congratulations!" a hurricane-themed cake would have messages in icing like "Go Away!" or "Leave Florida Alone, (name of impending storm)."

A hurricane cake typically has blue icing for water, green icing for the state of Florida, white icing for the "eye" of the storm and red, orange and yellow icing to symbolize a hurricane graphic from the National Hurricane Center or the National Weather Service. As of Aug. 17, Instagram has a hashtag with about 1,035 posts related to #hurricanecake. The hashtag has a lot of engagement on Twitter, too.

Note, bakers outside of Florida may be familiar with a different type of "hurricane cake" aka an "earthquake cake." That hurricane cake is made of German chocolate cake mix, pecans and coconut with a cream cheese mixture on top that "sinks" into the cake as it bakes, according to recipes on Food.com and allrecipes.com.

In case you're wondering ... Here are the best Instagram photos and tweets of the "so Florida" hurricane cakes

This is so Florida. No lie! Hurricane Ian caused catfish to turn up in Florida backyards

When did hurricane cakes start?

Although hurricane cakes went viral in September 2022 because of Hurricane Ian, the themed cakes have been getting engagement on social media since 2019, when a Publix bakery in Florida created a Hurricane Dorian-themed hurricane cake.

The photos circulated on social media and "hurricane cake" became a popular association with Florida's ... colorful ... response to impending storms. The cakes began as a way for cake decorators to test their skills and to give customers some delight as they prepare for uncertainty and storm preparation.

Is it just hurricane cakes?

Before Publix discontinued making hurricane-themed cakes, the bakery had made hurricane-themed cookie cakes (a giant chocolate chip cookie with the consistency of a brownie or blondie). Hurricane-themed cookie cakes were popular, too. However, the hurricane cookie cakes did not make as big a splash on social media as the hurricane cakes.

Does Publix make hurricane cakes?

Not anymore. In September 2022, Publix issued a statement about hurricane-themed cakes:

"What is Publix’s policy on hurricane cakes?

"We appreciate your reaching out regarding decorated cakes from our bakery departments. Our associates make every effort to support our customers during weather events. Often times, this includes finding ways to delight them with their favorite Publix items as they prepare for uncertainty. For these requests in particular, it is our company policy to not produce bakery cakes that would make light of a natural disaster. We have sent communications to our stores reminding them of our policy. We regret if a store has not followed policy, and we are working to rectify the situation.Our priority remains taking care of our customers, associates and communities as we prepare and respond to Hurricane Ian.”

When will they pay? Floridians say state not holding insurance carriers accountable post-Hurricane Ian

Over 7,000 complaints ... since January. Which insurance carriers are Florida homeowners complaining about?

How bad was Hurricane Ian?

Hurricane Ian was expected to go down in history as Florida's costliest hurricane and the deadliest since 1935.

Ian made landfall in southwestern Florida as a Category 4, producing catastrophic storm surge, damaging winds, and historic freshwater flooding across much of central and northern Florida. Ian was responsible for more than 150 direct and indirect deaths and over $112 billion in damage, making it the costliest hurricane in Florida’s history and the third-costliest in U.S. history.

In Lee County where Ian made landfall, more than 5,000 homes were destroyed, while and nearly 42,500 others were damaged or affected in some way.

Ian also made landfall as a category 3 hurricane in western Cuba bringing widespread damage and loss of power to the entire island. Ian made its final landfall as a category 1 hurricane in South Carolina.

How bad was Hurricane Ian? So bad that at least 35 Florida Waffle Houses closed

Will there ever be another Hurricane Ian?

The World Meteorological Organization's hurricane committee announced March 29, 2023 − six months after landfall − that the three-letter name Ian will be retired from future use of storm monikers. A storm name is retired if it is considered "so deadly or costly that the future use of its name on a different storm would be inappropriate for obvious reasons of sensitivity," WMO's site states.

There will likely be hurricanes and strong storms in our future, but there will never be another storm named Ian.

Contributing: Dinah Pulver, USA TODAY; Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY Network-Florida; Mark Bickel, (Fort Myers) News-Press and Naples Daily News; Clayton Park, Daytona Beach News-Journal; and Dave Berman, FLORIDA TODAY

Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Publix will not make, bake or sell hurricane cakes after Ian's wrath in Florida