Have you ever flipped through an old magazine and stopped on an ad that made your jaw drop? Yeah, same. Advertisers could get away with a lot more than they ever could now — and thank goodness times have changed. We’ve found some of the most offensive food-related ads from the 20th century, and we’re warning you now: You’re definitely going to feel uncomfortable.
Although we’re still battling biases, sexism, and racism in America today, back in the early- to mid-1900s, it was a white man’s world and everybody knew it. A woman’s place was in the kitchen, racial stereotypes were present in mainstream media, and doctors had their cigarette of choice, as did pregnant women… yikes.
Even though every once in a while we still get an ad like Kendall Jenner’s infamous Pepsi commercial that makes us go uh… really?, we don’t see blatant sexism and racism in magazines and on television quite like we used to. The vintage ads below are definitely going to be a shock to the system, so buckle up.
Again, we should warn you — scrolling through this list may not be suitable in an open office setting, you know?
This ad for aluminum (which is weird to us — who needs to purchase aluminum?) shows a woman trying to open a ketchup bottle.
But — but what about our nails? Our dainty nails! Obviously, something like this would never fly. Not only is it sexist, but ketchup bottles are way easier to open, no matter if you’re a gal or guy. Bless the 21st century.
This ad for Levy’s rye bed depicts a Native American person enjoying a sandwich on rye bread, with the text reading, “You don’t have to be Jewish to love Levy’s real Jewish Rye.”
Obviously, this is all kinds of wrong — saying anyone of any kind of ethnicity or background is allowed to like a certain kind of food is offensive.
Now everybody knows how absolutely vital Pyrex was for a proper kitchen. You could pack your elaborate meals and then store all of the yummy leftovers and only use one dish. It was (and still is) a genius product. This ad makes Pyrex looks completely dated, though. If your wife didn’t cook you a meal while wearing her wedding dress, drop her, gents! She’s no good!
We all know that back in the day, it was expected that women cook the food, and men come home and eat it. Luckily, our culture has gotten more progressive (these ideals still unfortunately prevail) and women’s roles in society aren’t cornered to just one place in the home.
Oh… Yikes… It’s hard to believe how big of a fail this one is. But we’re all looking at the same thing here. How can such a hearty, wholesome brand produce such a disheartening advertising campaign? Well, the entire company actually has a rather unsettling past. In fact, according to many historians, the company’s mascot is completely racist as well. He plays into many problematic stereotypes about Black men.
There is a lot of very disturbing imagery in this vintage breakfast food ad, too. A young person of color is portrayed as a thief — a common trope. Apparently, he stole a bunch of apples and had to run away to avoid being caught in the act. The warm cereal gave him energy and made him fast, though.
This 1960s Kool-Aid commercial would give almost anyone pause. Who knew the brand with the fun-loving Kool-Aid man could be so problematic? Apparently, this ad’s creators didn’t even try to be creative. It seems like they just relied on old, harmful tropes. The animated characters are noticeably stereotypical, and the Japanese storyteller is voiced by Mel Banc, who was very white. Oof.
“Say goodbye to depression!” this ad for Phosferine Tonic Wine — “A most delightful beverage — Cheering and comforting” — boasts. We’re not sure if the tonic wine advertisers were making light of depression, a very serious mental condition. But we don’t think it sends the best message, either way.
Listen, drinking wine is not going to cure one’s depression (for the long haul, anyway). However, during a time when everybody drank at all hours of the day, we can understand why people thought wine would do wonders for “weak nerves” and depression.
Don’t have a wife to cook you dinner? No problem. Don’t cook it yourself — just head on down to Hardee’s. This is another ad that indicates women “belong in the kitchen.” And even though Hardee’s changed its name to Carl’s Jr, we still find the message extremely unsettling.
Women don’t leave the kitchen! We all know a woman’s place is in the home, cooking a mean a delicious meal. But if you are still enjoying the bachelor’s life and don’t have a little miss waiting on you, then come down to Hardee’s for something sloppy and hastily prepared.
First of all, “sloppy and hastily prepared” doesn’t sound appetizing. Second, while this is clearly targeted to men (misogynistic men at that), it’s still kind of rude to just about everyone. Women only exist to serve their man. Men are helpless in the kitchen without their “little miss.” Sigh.
Um. Did the advertisers really want us to answer this question? We know this campaign is dated, but it is full of multi-layered offenses that need to be discussed. The Rice Council of America presented the campaign. And they unironically asked a body-shaming question and a racially-charged question. What were they thinking?
But the Rice Council really dropped the ball in a glaring way. Obviously, Chinese people eat more than rice. This ad attempts to oversimplify and reduce an entire culture to one food item and one body type. Seriously, there are much better ways to sell rice.
What’s with these wives and their terrible coffee? Or rather, what’s with all of these brands making jokes about a woman’s place in the kitchen? None of the advertisements withstood the test of time. Moreover, is a good cup of coffee really the most important part of a relationship? We don’t think so.
Well, this Kenwood ad really puts things into perspective. According to them, women have a very particular role. If we’re to believe this dated marketing relic, all ladies should focus on cooking. Thanks for the support, Kenwood!
It claims, “The Chef does everything but cook — that’s what wives are for!” Again, it’s super reductive and gross. The ad was most likely directed to male buyers, though. Supposedly, a Chef mixer would be the perfect gift for all those overworked housewives. It’s not like they would’ve appreciated a their husbands’ help in the kitchen instead.
Here’s another racially problematic ad. The Aunt Jemima mascot is diminutive and insulting to many people, but the company insisted on keeping the relic of a very racist point in history. We don’t know what’s worse — the “I’se in town honey!” or the fact that kids could buy Aunt Jemima’s Family rag dolls. Disgusting.
Apparently, coffee brands loved using sexist tropes to sell their product, but they also relied on really weird ads to do so. We don’t completely understand the marketing campaign here, but maybe we’re not supposed to?
Things can get really crazy if the ladies don’t provide plenty of coffee for the men in their lives. Oh, and the coffee cannister absolutely must be supersized.
Well, this one is disturbing for a different reason. We can’t believe how many people thought DDT (Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) was okay. In fact, the odorless, tasteless, and colorless chemical compound was actually used as an insecticide. It has had a huge negative impact on our environment.
How wrong we were. This wordy ad basically claimed that DDT was completely safe and beneficial for all of humanity. The campaign noted, “Today, everyone can enjoy added comfort, health and safety through the insect-killing powers of Pennsalt DDT products.” But that information was far from the truth. Worst of all, DDT was used in produce, meats, dairy, and more. It was basically unavoidable.
How could something so sweet be so unsavory? Well, for starters, whoever was in charge of marketing couldn’t have known anything about sensitivity training. They chose to go the offensive route and adopt a reprehensible dialect. It was pretty unnecessary.
So, even fresh fruits and vegetables were subject to have cringe-worthy campaign ads back then. We’re not sure why celery needed an ad, to begin with, but this brand certainly thought it was necessary. And of course, the resulting product leaves much to be desired.
We’re surprised this ad was allowed to go to print back then, so we definitely don’t think it’s appropriate for this day and age. Indeed, X-ray colon vision would just be an invasion of privacy.
Another racially-changed and culturally-ignorant ad, are you shocked? This one relied on a very overdone bad stereotype to sell Rice Krinkles. You have to see it to believe something this ridiculous. And what exactly did the brand do?
The Krinkles brand depicted a person with Asian heritage, and the language was inappropriate just like the fictional spokesperson’s name. Advertisers called the figure So-Hi because he was short. It was a really unnecessary advertising move.
Who knew even Heiz would let us down? Their language attempts to make light of a very serious situation, and we’re not here for it all. The food and condiment brand’s campaign reads, “Most husbands nowadays, have stopped beating their wives, but what can be more agonizing to a sensitive soul than a man’s boredom at meals.”
And we certainly don’t love this flippant tone. Moreover, we can think of a few other non-offensive and terrible ways to advertise Heinz’s Cream of Tomato Soup. They could’ve been more creative.
Yup. Kellogg’s had a place in the inappropriate vintage ad scene. Apparently, hardly any major food brand knew how to sell products without offending at least one group of people. In fact, Kellog’s took everything way too far. It offered a super problematic “Cornfucius Say” joke book to kids who ate Kellogg’s Corn Flakes.
“Colonel Sanders is a woman’s best friend,” this ad says. Both “weary wives” and “working women” can rely on the Colonel’s chicken to feed their family when they can’t. Thank goodness for the Colonel’s support. We’re sure that’s what every woman felt majorly supported.
Welp — we need to go take a shower. We can’t take the heat of these vintage food ads, so we’ll gladly step out of the kitchen.
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