Now Mr Potato Head goes gender-neutral

Children get to choose toy’s title

HE’S the wisecracking, cynical spud who became a worldwide star thanks to Toy Story.

But Mr Potato Head has had his chips – in the interests of diversity.

The toy – first produced in 1949 – is to become gender-neutral after maker Hasbro decided he needed a modern makeover.

He will now be known simply as ‘Potato Head’. Mrs Potato Head, his wife – pictured with him here – will also lose her pronoun.

From later this year Potato Head family packs will come with two non-gendered ‘adult’ potatoes, one ‘baby’ spud, and 42 accessories, allowing children to decide the parents’ gender, rather than being told they are Mr and Mrs.

Kimberly Boyd, senior vice-president at Hasbro, said children ‘want to be able to represent their own experiences’ with their toys.

She said: ‘Culture has evolved.

The way the brand currently exists… is limiting when it comes to both gender identity and family structure’.

The toy is the latest to be brought into the 21st century as manufacturers look to rebrand their products for a new generation of children. Barbie shed her characteristic skinny blonde image in 2016 after Mattel released dolls with multiple skin tones and body shapes to reflect more realistic body images. Thomas the Tank Engine was updated in 2018 to include more female characters after some parents accused it of sexism. Mr Potato Head was created over 70 years ago by American George Herner, who first began distributing Potato Head parts in breakfast cereal boxes. It was manufactured by Hasbro three years later and became the first toy advertised on TV in 1952, costing 98 cents. The original Mr Potato Head kit did not come with a potato ‘body’, so parents had to provide their own potato for children to stick the different facial features in.

Mr Potato Head was joined by Mrs Potato Head in 1953. He made his film debut in 1995 with a leading role in Toy Story, voiced by actor and comedian Don Rickles.

In December, gender equality charity the Fawcett Society warned that gender stereotyping in toys, books and fashion was ‘significantly limiting’ children’s career choices and causing serious, long-lasting harm’.