The Early Years: 1940s-1960s The name “Uncle Ben's” was chosen as a tribute to an African-American rice farmer from Texas named Benjamin Franklin Randolph, who had been a mentor to Harwell and Huzenlaub.

Frank Brown Frank Brown was the man whose image became the face of Uncle Ben's in 1946, said Caroline Sherman, a spokeswoman for Mars Food, the brand's parent company. Brown was a maitre d' in a Chicago restaurant. Not much else is known about him, but Sherman said there is an effort to learn more.

Leveraging this new patented parboiling process the company began producing UNCLE BEN'S CONVERTED™ Rice at a new factory in Houston that changed the way people cooked and served rice–promising that rice "cooks up white and fluffy without steaming".

Ben's Ready Rice original long grain makes it easy to support a well-balanced diet. Cholesterol free, Very low sodium, good source of iron and folic acid, 0g trans fat, and no saturated fat! Cook in the microwave or stove top.

Uncle Ben's Changing Name To Ben's Original After Criticism Of Racial Stereotyping. Boxes of Uncle Ben Converted Rice on a store shelf.

According to Mars, the name was originally inspired by a real-life African-American Texas rice farmer, known for the high quality of his products, while the image was modelled after a Chicago maitre d named Frank Brown - who was reportedly paid the equivalent of $50 for his likeness.

Ben's Original™ Ready Rice™ Our delicious flavored rice varieties are the ultimate in convenience. That's because they're precooked, so you just have to heat them up and serve them with your favorite recipe or rice meal. Since they're microwavable, they're ready in just 90 seconds.

According to Uncle Ben's, the parboiling process drives the nutrition back into the rice kernel, helping it recapture over 80 percent of the vitamins and minerals of the whole grain. The University of Arkansas (U of A) confirms that parboiling rice helps it retain the majority of its nutrition.

The character is an African American woman who was originally dressed as a minstrel show performer. Mars said in the summer that Uncle Ben was a fictional character whose name was first used in 1946 as a reference to an African American Texan rice farmer.

Its marketing has been criticised for perpetuating racial stereotypes. Titles such as uncle and aunt were used in southern US states to refer to black people, instead of the more formal and respectful "Miss" or "Mister". The name Uncle Ben's was supposedly inspired by a Texas farmer known for his high-quality rice.

Preparation process The rice is blanched in hot water, steamed, and rinsed. It is then placed in large ovens for dehydration until the moisture content reaches approximately twelve percent or less. The basic principle involves using hot water or steam to form cracks or holes in the kernels before dehydrating.