PepsiCo Rebrands Aunt Jemima to Pearl Milling Company

Feb. 10, 2021

Pearl Milling Company-branded pancake mixes, syrups, cornmeal, flour, and grits products will start to arrive in market in June 2021.

Erin A. Hallstrom

Nearly a year after it announced it would drop the name Aunt Jemima from its branding, Quaker Oats and its parent company PepsiCo, have announced a new name for the pancake mix and syrup products: Pearl Milling Company. Quaker Oats made the decision in the aftermath of widespread protests about racial inequality. Several other companies and brands followed suit, renaming their products.

According to the announcement, Pearl Milling Company-branded pancake mixes, syrups, cornmeal, flour, and grits products will start to arrive in market in June 2021. Though the branding may be new, the name Pearl Milling Company is not. Pearl Milling Company was founded in 1888 in St. Joseph, Missouri, and was the originator of the iconic self-rising pancake mix that would later become known as Aunt Jemima. The Quaker Oats Company purchased the Aunt Jemima brand in 1925.

Last year, descendants of two women who inspired the Aunt Jemima image were angry about the rebranding, saying the effort would erase part of their family histories.

About the Author

Erin A. Hallstrom

Erin Hallstrom oversaw our digital content strategy for the Food Processing brand from 2008-2023. She is now the Associate Director of SEO Strategy for Endeavor Business Media, where she holds technical certifications in both website analytics and search engine optimization. Most recently, she was named the 2022 Marianne Dekker Mattera Award Winner.