Eskimo Pie becomes latest food brand to pander

The 99-year-old dessert Eskimo Pie will become the latest food brand to undergo a name change.

Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream, the company that owns Eskimo Pie, will be renaming the iconic ice cream treat amid a wave of other brands investigating its name or mascot over concerns of racist images or names, according to a report from CNN.

“We are committed to being a part of the solution on racial equality, and recognize the term is derogatory,” Elizabell Marquez, Dreyer’s’ head of marketing, said in a statement to CNN.

According to the Alaska Native Language Center at the University of Alaska, Eskimo “is considered derogatory in many other places because it was given by non-Inuit people and was said to mean ‘eater of raw meat.’” The word refers to the Inuit and Yupik people living in Alaska, CNN reported.

The Eskimo Pie joins the rebranding of food groups across the country, including Aunt Jemima, Uncle Ben’s and Cream of Wheat, that have either launched an investigation into their brand or vowed a change.

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