Jamie Oliver has been accused of cultural appropriation by Labour's shadow women and equalities minister and other social media users for launching 'punchy jerk rice'.

Dawn Butler, the MP for Brent Central in north west London, picked up on comments from social media about the product and joined in with her own criticism.

She suggested Oliver was using the word jerk to increase the sales of his rice and his product was not faithful to the original Caribbean recipe which is usually a marinade for meat.

The Labour MP also suggested father-of-five ask Levi Roots, the creator of jerk barbeque sauce Reggae Reggae sauce, to teach him about it.

Ms Butler tweeted: '#jamieoliver @jamieoliver #jerk I'm just wondering do you know what #Jamaican #jerk actually is?

'It's not just a word you put before stuff to sell products. @levirootsmusic should do a masterclass. Your jerk Rice is not ok. This appropriation from Jamaica needs to stop.'

Jamie Oliver has been accused of cultural appropriation over his £2.30 'punchy jerk rice' (pictured)

Social media users have called the celebrity chef out for incorrectly using the label 'jerk' on his product

Labour MP Dawn Butler suggested the father-of-five ask Levi Roots, the creator of jerk barbeque sauce Reggae Reggae sauce, to teach him about it

Jerk can refer to a type of cooking which involves marinating meat in a jerk spice mixture, or the marinade itself. It originated in Jamaica.

What is jerk seasoning? Jerk can refer to both the spice mix or the style of cooking which originated in Jamaica. The name is believed to have come from charqui, the Spanish word for dried meat. Traditionally a meat such as chicken or jerk is marinated in the jerk seasoning before being cooked over fire. Nowadays, the dish is cooked in wood-fire ovens or grilled over charcoal. The seasoning mix is primarily allspice and Scotch bonnet peppers, but usually also contains garlic, cayenne pepper and cinnamon. Advertisement

The spice mix itself primarily uses allspice and Scotch bonnet peppers - neither of which are listed on the ingredients list for Mr Oliver's product - alongside others.

David Llewellyn wrote: 'I was about to headbutt my desk over this tweet from Dawn Butler because most cultural appropriation brouhahas are nonsense.

'Then I saw this description of Jamie Oliver's "Jerk" Rice. On what planet can "garlic, ginger and jalapenos" be described as "Jerk"?'

Many jerk recipes involve meat such as chicken or pork, but Mr Oliver's £2.30 microwaveable rice offering is vegetarian, with the packaging suggesting it is 'seriously good' with chicken wings.

Sainsbury's, Morrisons, and Waitrose all stock the product on their websites.

The row over the rice began a few days ago when Bristolian Marti Burgess, the associate director of law firm Gregg Latchams, tweeted a snap of the product in her local supermarket.

Ms Butler, the shadow women and equalities minister, said jerk is 'not just a word you put before stuff to sell products'

Regina Holland pointed out that 'there is no such thing as jerk rice' and that 'she's not saying nobody from Jamaica shouldn't eat Jamaican food, she's pointing out the bastardisation of our national dish'

Ms Burgess wrote: 'OMG - this has sent me over the edge - jerk is a marinade and a method of cooking meat @jamieoliver why have you done this? You just can’t have jerk rice.'

Since then several Twitter users, including Ms Butler, have called Mr Oliver out for incorrectly using the label 'jerk'.

Regina Holland said: 'Just because Dawn Butler's an MP it doesn't mean she can't have an opinion on anything else. To say otherwise is ridiculous and single minded at best.

'She's not saying nobody from Jamaica shouldn't eat Jamaican food, she's pointing out the bastardisation of our national dish.

'There's no such thing as jerk rice apart from what Jamie Oliver has concocted. That's her point. Anybody from any nationality can eat anything they want, there are just some dishes that are best left alone and enjoyed how they're supposed to be made.'

Michelle Bryan added: 'Spot on Dawn - as the daughter of a proud Jamaican, I know that my dad hated this type of thing - so fake.'

But not everyone has agreed with Ms Butler - with many pointing out that British people eat food from many different cultures

One individual said: 'Appropriation has quite a specific meaning, and refers to profiting from another’s culture when they themselves are often restricted from doing so.

'It’s an extension of the the power that comes from colonisation. Nothing to do with sharing cultures.'

But not everyone has agreed with Ms Butler, with many pointing out that British people eat food from many different cultures.

One Twitter user wrote: 'Now while I do think Jamie needs taking down a peg or three you're all getting very silly over this appropriation stuff. If no one cooked/ate food from other cultures in the world what a boring life we'd lead.'

Benjamin Tucker said: 'Are you honestly saying that white people can’t cook food from other cultures in case they get it slightly wrong?'

Jamie Oliver and Dawn Butler have been contacted for comment.

This is not the first time Mr Oliver has sparked controversy with his own versions of traditional recipes.

Back in 2014, he enraged West Africans with a Jollof rice recipe on his website causing a huge backlash dubbed 'Jollofgate'.

Mr Oliver was criticised for his use of cherry tomatoes on the vine, when Jollof rice is traditionally made with blended tomatoes, onions, and bell peppers.

The Motley Musings blogger said at the time: 'We have to ask ourselves who actually benefits from Jamie Oliver's "appreciation" of Jollof rice. This doesn't necessarily translate into value for Africans.

'For so long, different African cultures have been appropriated without any direct benefit to Africans themselves, and people are particularly sensitive to this.'