Yikes! chip founders bet on flavor: "No Yellow 5, no Red 40"

• Salty snacks generated $41.9 billion in U.S. sales over the past year, down about 0.6 %, according to new data from Chicago-based Circana.
• Potato-chip sales slipped 1.9 % to $11.5 billion, while tortilla-chip sales held steadier around $9 billion — a sign that shoppers are still reaching for bold flavors even as overall volume softens.

For the Yikes! trio, snacks aren't just business — they're culture.

• Berner grew up in San Francisco watching his father run a Mexican restaurant.
• Berro's family has worked in snack distribution for decades.
• And Lindsay, who is celebrating 30 years for Rap Snacks, says he has only refined his palate as he has been eating chips since he was a kid on the streets of Philadelphia, where sometimes "snacks are your meal."

Context: Each brings a distinct expertise to the new brand: Lindsay's flavor science, Berro's distribution grind and Berner's marketing power.

• Together, they think they've built the perfect mix to jump into the rolled-tortilla game.

What they're saying: "Takis built this category on fire," Lindsay told Axios. "We're building it on flavor."

State of play: Lindsay says he's an avid researcher who's watched how parents and watchdog groups have long raised concerns about artificial food dyes like Yellow No. 5 and Red 40 — two of the most common petroleum-based colorings found in brightly colored snacks and drinks.

• The FDA considers them safe, but studies have linked the dyes to behavioral issues and allergies in children.
• Major food makers have faced pressure — and lawsuits — to remove them from kid-focused products.

Zoom in: Berner calls Lindsay "the Willy Wonka of snacks." With 30 years in manufacturing experience, Lindsay says he's a flavor scientist refining what's already on the shelf.

• Lindsay said he wanted to deliver the same crunch and heat of popular rolled chips without the hiccups.
• "No Yellow 5, no Red 40," he said. "Yikes! is the first rolled tortilla chip without either — and now everybody else will have to follow."

Between the lines: In April, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the FDA announced that they'll phase out all petroleum-based food dyes — including Yellow No. 5 and Red No. 40 — by the end of 2026, while fast-tracking approval of natural color alternatives.

Lindsay may be the flavor scientist, but Berner knows flavor, too — just in a different sense.

• Berner's flavor instincts were forged in the cannabis world, where he helped turn strains into brands — and where Lindsay told him it was time to diversify.
• "That weed business is slowing down; you can get weed anywhere now," Berner told Axios. "Snacks and munchies go hand in hand — and I've always been about flavor."
• Lindsay said: "I told him, you need to get into the munchies game. He's a great promoter, and I like him as a person."

Zoom out: Lindsay says they will eventually expand the Cookies brand with new products focused on flavor — not cannabis.

• Similarly, Lindsay is helping Berro rebrand Chipoys, a Mexican-style chip shifting its focus to bold flavors like Tapatío and salsa verde after an uneven debut three years ago.

Berner is the hype machine, handing out chips from the back of his trunk at concerts, the office and the studio.

• Considered the closer, he is also pushing them through his Cookies network.

Their shared perspective is shaping how they want to give back. Rolley, the Yikes! mascot, is already visiting schools and college events to promote healthier snacking.

• "If we get kids early and keep it fun, we've got them for life," Berro said.

What's next: Yikes! and Chipoys are rolling out across the Bay Area, Arizona and online — with new flavors and formats coming in 2026.

• "We're on a mission," Lindsay said. "Better flavor, better ingredients — same crunch."

Go deeper: James Lindsay built a multi-million dollar snack empire merging hip-hop and culture