Goodbye, Aunt Jemima; Uncle Ben Next?

Above, an earlier version of Aunt Jemima packaging.

First, it was Land o Lakes butter removing the beautiful Indian maiden from its packaging. Now, one (maybe two) other brands are doing the same

A brand that dates over 130 years is being "retired".

Fox News reported:

Aunt Jemima is being rebranded with a new name and image, parent company Quaker Oats has announced, acknowledging that the face of the brand was “based on a racial stereotype.”

It was announced on Wednesday morning that the line of pancake mix, syrup, and other breakfast foods will be debut a new look as part of Quaker’s push to “to make progress toward racial equality.” 

“We recognize Aunt Jemima’s origins are based on a racial stereotype," said Kristin Kroepfl, vice president and chief marketing officer of Quaker Foods North America, in a statement shared with Fox News. “As we work to make progress toward racial equality through several initiatives, we also must take a hard look at our portfolio of brands and ensure they reflect our values and meet our consumers’ expectations."

And, following suit by Quaker Foods' action (from Adweek):

Just hours after PepsiCo acknowledged its Aunt Jemima brand is based on a racial stereotype and it will change the name and packaging, rice brand Uncle Ben’s said it plans to follow suit by “evolving the visual brand identity.” 

In an email, Sara Schulte, external communications manager for Uncle Ben’s parent company Mars Food North America, said, “We have indeed been considering a more substantive change and have begun that work even before news of Aunt Jemima.” 

She did not specify what that “substantive change” will look like or what the timing will be, saying only, “We are evaluating all possibilities.”

 Soon, offended bald guys with earrings will be gunning for Mr. Clean!

To read more, go here.

For the story of the real "Aunt Jemima", Nancy Green, go here.

Switching To Challenge Butter

Any company who kowtows to the politically correct crowd will no longer get my dollars for their products.

The move by Land O Lakes Butter in removing the Indian maiden from their packaging is the just the latest kowtow by an American company to a few P.C. idiots.

Their packaging went from this:

To this:

A couple of typical comments on the Land O Lakes Facebook page:

As an American with Native American roots (Delaware tribe) your product is no longer welcome in my home. 

*** 

I am done with Land O Lakes..a product I have bought for years. Bending over in the name of political correctness is an insult to native Americans. The young maiden signified the closeness to Nature and a respect for the Earth which we all admire. You gave that up for what?

Land O Lakes response:

Thank you for your message about our new packaging. We are sorry to hear about your decision. We’re changing some of our packaging as our cooperative nears its 100th anniversary in 2021 and to celebrate our farmer members who make our delicious products possible.. We’ve found the “Farmer-owned” labeling along with colorful and bright images of land and lakes helps better explain who we are to consumers. We appreciate your writing and your comment will be shared with our product team.

Nothing like celebrating their 100th anniversary with a public relations fiasco.