PepsiCo renames 'Aunt Jemima' after protests

[WASHINGTON] PepsiCo has renamed the Aunt Jemima brand of pancake syrup and batter, fulfilling a promise made last year amid widespread protests in the United States against racism.

The new brand will be called Pearl Milling Company - after the business founded in 1888 which created the mix that became Aunt Jemima - and will hit store shelves in June, PepsiCo said on Tuesday.

The food and beverage giant in June 2020 announced it would end the Aunt Jemima's line, which is adorned with the face of a black woman.

The decision came amid nationwide protests following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Those sparked a wider reckoning around racism in American society, which has a long history of racist caricatures of African Americans.

PepsiCo said in announcing the name change that it "worked with consumers, employees, external cultural and subject-matter experts and diverse agency partners to gather broad perspectives and ensure the new brand was developed with inclusivity in mind."

Mars made a similar decision, rebranding its Uncle Ben's brand of rice decorated by an elderly Black man in a bow tie to Ben's Original.

AFP