Racial Inequities in Food Go Far Beyond Insidious Branding
A Q&A with University of Texas professor Ashanté Reese explores how to address racism in the U.S. food system.
Still waiting.
Photographer: Lane Turner/The Boston Globe
Corporate America is waking up to the relationship between food and race. A petition has been circulating this week urging grocery chain Trader Joe’s to “remove racist branding” and rename food items labeled as Trader Ming’s, Trader Jose’s and Trader Giotto’s. The company responded that a rebranding effort is underway.
The news follows similar company announcements. The PepsiCo Inc division that sells Aunt Jemima products acknowledged last month that its 131-year-old pancake brand was “based on a racial stereotype” and vowed to change its name and image. Mars Inc followed suit and announced plans to discontinue and “evolve” its Uncle Ben’s brand of rice products. Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream also said it would find a new name for its Eskimo Pie ice cream bars.