New 2019 Gerber 'spokesbaby' marks another first for iconic baby food company

Meet the 2019 Gerber spokesbaby!

February 26, 2019, 12:52 PM

This year's Gerber baby is another first in the iconic baby food company's 92-year history.

She follows the 2018 baby, Lucas Warren -- another pint-sized pioneer.

Warren was the first spokesbaby with Down syndrome and captured the hearts of millions.

This year's spokesbaby, announced Tuesday, is also a first. Kairi Yang is the first spokesbaby of Hmong descent. The Hmong community is roughly only 126,000 people total.

PHOTO: One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby, pictured here with her parents Ying Vu and Peter Yang.
One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby, pictured here with her parents Ying Vu and Peter Yang.
Yang family via Gerber

"It’s an honor to the Hmong community that Kairi was chosen as Gerber’s 2019 Spokesbaby," Kairi's mother, Ying Vue, said. "Peter [Kairi's dad] and I are proud to be our parents’ children and of the Hmong community. Hmong in our eyes is all about the close bonds we have with family."

As soon as we saw her photo, we fell in love with Kairi’s expressive eyes and angelic face, looking toward the future and being excited for all that it holds.

Little Kairi was picked from more than half a million entries on Instagram.

PHOTO: One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby.
One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby.
Yang family via Gerber

“As soon as we saw her photo, we fell in love with Kairi’s expressive eyes and angelic face, looking toward the future and being excited for all that it holds,” said Bill Partyka, President and CEO, Gerber. “We believe that every baby is a Gerber baby, and this year, are thrilled to recognize Kairi as the new face of Gerber. It’s been an incredible year celebrating our 2018 Spokesbaby Lucas Warren and his family, and we are excited to see the world fall in love all over again with our newest Spokesbaby.”

PHOTO: One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby. Yang is the winner of the ninth annual photo search and will receive $50,000 for being the face of Gerber for the year.
One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby. Yang is the winner of the ninth annual photo search and will receive $50,000 for being the face of Gerber for the year.
Yang family via Gerber

Kairi lives with her family in North Carolina.

PHOTO: One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby.
One-year-old Kairi Yang from Hickory, N.C., is the new Gerber Spokesbaby.
Yang family via Gerber

“When we first found out Kairi won, we were speechless and couldn’t believe it.We are beyond thrilled that our sweet Kairi is Gerber’s 2019 Spokesbaby,” said Kairi’s mom. “Kairi’s personality is larger than life, and she always maintains a spunky attitude. We hope Kairi’s one-of-a-kind, entertaining personality and vibrant facial expressions radiate positivity around the world, just like she does in our home every single day!”