Nestle to rename two Australian sweets with racist ‘overtones’

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Nestlé will change the names of two of its confectionery products in Australia - Red Skins and Chicos sweets - on the grounds that they have racial “overtones”.

As the global debate over racial inequality continues following the killing of George Floyd in US police custody last month, corporations are being forced to examine their products and ethics to ensure they are not complicit in encouraging racism.

Both products are sold only in Australia and are produced by the Australian confectionery company Allen’s.

In a short statement on its website, Nestlé said: “This decision acknowledges the need to ensure that nothing we do marginalises our friends, neighbours and colleagues.

“These names have overtones which are out of step with Nestle’s values, which are rooted in respect. While new names have not yet been finalised, we will move quickly to change these names.”

Redskin is an offensive slang term that refers to Native Americans, while chico, which translates to “boy” in Spanish, can be offensive to those of Latin American descent.

The packaging of Red Skins candy, a raspberry-flavoured chewy confectionery, originally featured an image of a headdress-wearing Native American, but was changed a neutral red and purple wrapper in the 1990s.

Allen’s said in a post on Facebook: “This decision acknowledges the need to keep creating smiles, ensuring that nothing we do marginalises our friends, neighbours and colleagues, or is out of step with our values.”

Nestlé has long faced calls to change the names of the candies and made the decision following PepsiCo Inc’s move to change the name and brand image of its Aunt Jemima pancake mix and syrup, which have been criticised as racist.

Several other companies have followed suit, including the makers of Uncle Ben’s rice, owned by Mars Inc; Mrs Butterworth’s syrup, owned by ConAgra Brans Inc and Cream of Wheat porridge, owned by B&G Foods Inc, who have said they would review their packaging.