Cutiefly were long pressed into service to determine which pokemon a trainer should raise, and Ribombee are likewise used to make them happy. Ribombee roll their pollen into puffs, which they use not only to attack foes and heal comrades in battle, but to make delicious snacks after the match. Pokepuffs are in truth nothing more than Ribombee puffs, exported from Alola to regions as far as Hoenn and Kalos, for they are prized by pokemon everywhere. It is said that Ribombee's pokepuffs are so delicious that the simple act of feeding a pokepuff to one's pokemon can actually strengthen their bond with their trainer, and many humans, tempted by the smell, have attempted to take a bite. But Ribombee are not just bugs making food from plants, like Vespiquen; they are fairies with a fairy's determination to keep humanity away.
Humans who taste pokepuffs do indeed find them delicious, but not delicious enough to consider it worth enduring the side effects. The stomachache is frustrating, but not life-threatening; a couple day's bed-rest will leave one feeling, at least physically, good as new. Ribombee's real curse comes with one's relationship to the world of pokemon – for not only will strange pokemon greet any human who devoured a pokepuff with unexplained growls and hisses, but even one's own pokemon will lose much of their fighting spirit.
No trainer who has consumed a pokepuff has ever won another match without first breaking the curse. Ribombee are among the kinder fairies, and will accept a trainer's apology instead of dooming them to an early grave. All one must do is fly to Alola, capture a Ribombee, and feed it a pokepuff of the exact style and flavor they consumed; and, of course, lead with that very Ribombee in their long-awaited victorious battle!