Serving the sequel to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, the film was directed by Cody Cameron and Kris Pearn from a screenplay written by Erica Rivinoja and the writing team of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein.

New cast members include Kristen Schaal as Chester's orangutan assistant, Barb, and Terry Crews as Earl Devereaux, replacing Mr. T.[9] The film's plot focuses on Flint Lockwood and his friends returning to Swallow Falls to save the world after the presumed-destroyed Flint Lockwood Diatonic Super Mutating Dynamic Food Replicator (FLDSMDFR) reactivates, this time creating sentient food creatures.

Chester later informs Flint that the seemingly-destroyed FLDSMDFR is still functioning, and is creating sentient food creatures known as foodimals, one of which is attacking his employees stationed on Swallow Falls.

Flint takes his pet monkey Steve, his meteorologist girlfriend Sam Sparks, her cameraman Manny, police officer Earl Devereaux, and former Swallow Falls mascot "Chicken" Brent McHale.

While Tim stays on the boat and befriends some living pickles, Flint and his friends work their way through the jungle-like environment of food that now completely covers the island.

When the group deduces that the foodimals have realized something sinister about the company (as the "live" part of its name is simply "evil" spelled backwards) they attempt to warn Flint, but Chester's sentinels capture them.

With the FLDSMDFR now under his control, Chester disposes of Flint, begins building a new factory, and starts capturing foodimals, planning to use them as the key ingredients in Live Corp's upcoming food bars line.

John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein, and Erica Rivinoja[2] wrote the screenplay, which is based on an original story idea, not on Pickles to Pittsburg, Ron and Judi Barrett's follow-up book.

[16] Bill Hader, Anna Faris, James Caan, Andy Samberg, Neil Patrick Harris, and Benjamin Bratt reprised their roles.

[24] The home media was accompanied by a quartet of animated shorts based on the main feature: Super Manny, Earl Scouts, Steve's First Bath, and Attack of the 50-Foot Gummi Bear.

The site's consensus reads: "While not as clever or inventive as its predecessor, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 compensates with enough dazzling visuals to keep younger viewers entertained.

[41] Michael Rechtshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a positive review, saying "While not as delightfully breezy as the original, an engaging voice cast and hordes of 'Foodimals' still manage to serve up a tasty sequel.

"[47] In a lukewarm review, Tim Robey of The Daily Telegraph said "For all its properly surreal mayhem, this flick isn't quite as nimble or emotionally rounded as its predecessor.

But parents who were pleasantly surprised by the original film's intelligence will miss Lord and Miller's guiding hands, as what once felt so funny now leaves a stale taste.

"[49] Rafer Guzman of Newsday thought it "relies on the usual noxious recipe for junky kid flicks: loud noise, pop music and poop jokes.

"[51] Tom Russo of The Boston Globe gave the film two out of four stars, saying "It's another brightly rendered effort, but, as the title indicates, a lot of the real creativity seems to have been used up the first time around.

"[56] Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle called it "a humorous yet unfocused romp, so unwilling to settle on a single theme that hyperactivity medication should be handed out with the 3-D glasses.

Like a foodie Jurassic Park conjured up by Tex Avery, Cloudy 2 is a sight to behold … as long as your brain hasn't turned to mush by the halfway point.

"[58] Amy Nicholson of The Village Voice compared the franchise to "The Muppets and Pee Wee's Playhouse, kids' shows that ripen as their audience matures.

"[3] Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times gave the film three and a half stars out of five, saying "Honestly, anyone who can pull off a running joke about leeks that does not make you gag, and is in fact a silly delight, deserves props.

A free mobile game titled Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2: Foodimal Frenzy was developed by PlayFirst and released for both iOS and Android devices.

A downloadable app titled Foodimal Funimal was released for free by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment on iOS and Android mobile devices on August 20, 2013.