Inspiration Vs Cultural Appropriation: Who Are The Jerks In The Jerk Business?

Inspiration Vs Cultural Appropriation: Who Are The Jerks In The Jerk Business?

For the past few years, Jamaican Jerk flavoring has been having a moment. The global demand for the authentic taste of scotch bonnet peppers and allspice berries infused with pimento wood, commonly featuring thyme, ginger, garlic and scallion, has taken diners beyond Jamaica's roadside jerk stands, with their intoxicatingly delicious scents and repurposed steel drum grills, to supermarket shelves, mass market dining establishments and big food producers. And while the Jerk tradition has created commercial opportunities for Jamaica, some foreign adaptations of the Jerk trend have attracted allegations of cultural appropriation and marketing gimmickry.

A Jamaican Jerk stand



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In November 2020 for instance, The Association for Dressings and Sauces awarded Zaxby's Caribbean Jerk Sauce, produced by California-based Golden State Foods, the distinction of “top sauce of the year.” Golden State Foods developed the sauce for Zaxby's, an Atlanta-based fast food chain, as a condiment for its Caribbean Jerk Fillet Sandwich and a glaze for its wings. The limited time offer for the sauce was so popular that it had to be extended.

Kate Dolan, Golden State's senior corporate chef, described the sauce, made of mango and habanero peppers, as "authentic, fruity, sweet