Trader Joe’s, the popular Monrovia-based grocery store, has once again found itself in the social media spotlight due to its product-naming practices, which some have criticized as “racist.” A TikTok video by user Kyi (@kyeatdaays) has reignited the debate over the grocer’s decades-old tradition of assigning names based on imagined countries of origin to various packaged foods.
Kyi’s video, following the popular point-of-view method, garnered significant attention as she discovered that a frozen bag of Mandarin Orange Chicken, a highly popular item at the store, was labeled as “Trader Ming’s.” The video quickly amassed 2.1 million views, approximately 150,000 likes, and numerous comments expressing both surprise and support.
a different name for every culture too lol #traderjoes #traderjoesorangechicken #orangechicken #asianfoodtiktok
In the video caption, Kyi wrote, “POV: U just found out Trader Joe’s does THIS to cultural foods.” This incident echoes a similar controversy in 2020 when a high school student from the San Francisco Bay Area petitioned Trader Joe’s to discontinue the practice.
Commenters on the video shared their thoughts, with many expressing lighthearted opinions and some defending the retailer. The naming tradition is applied to foods associated with specific cultures, resulting in labels like “Trader Giottos” for Italian food and playful suggestions like “Trader Zhou’s.”
Some viewers confessed to enjoying the playful names, such as “Trader Jacques” for French foods like the store’s signature wheel of brie cheese. Others, representing different cultural backgrounds, expressed appreciation for names like “Trader Jose” for Mexican foods.
Despite the controversy, some commenters were surprised that the discussion was ongoing, as they believed Trader Joe’s had discontinued the naming practice years ago. One commenter mentioned a recall of a statement by the store in 2020, where they initially pledged to make changes but later backtracked, asserting that they would maintain the tradition.
In the 2020 statement posted on its website, Trader Joe’s defended its product naming, stating, “We disagree that any of these labels are racist. We do not make decisions based on petitions.” The company emphasized that the naming tradition, appreciated by customers, was intended to be fun and a way to show appreciation for various cultures.
With over 560 stores across 43 states, Trader Joe’s remains at the center of this ongoing discussion about the intersection of product naming, cultural sensitivity, and consumer appreciation. The viral video has once again thrust the grocer into the social media spotlight, prompting a diverse range of reactions from users.
