Uncle Ben’s to Rebrand as Part of Stance Against Racism

Uncle Ben’s to Rebrand as Part of Stance Against Racism Parent company Mars Inc. has announced their intention to change the “visual brand identity” of their Uncle Ben’s brand. In a statement, Mars said it was their“responsibility” as a global brand to help putan end to “racial bias and injustices.” Mars,via statement They did not announce a timeline for thebrand’s changes or what those changeswould entail, but they did note that theywere “evaluating all possibilities.” The packaging of Uncle Ben’s rice has longbeen criticized for its problematic use of aBlack man to represent a white company. According to the brand’s website, the box’s imagewas modeled after Frank Brown, a waiter atthe Chicago restaurant where founder GordonHarwell conceived the idea for Uncle Ben’s. Critics have also pointed out that the brand’sname is an issue, as Black men were commonlyreferred to as “boy” or “uncle” during the JimCrow era in order to avoid calling them “Mr.” Mrs. Butterworth's, Cream of Wheat and Aunt Jemima are taking similar measures.