Palace Accused of Throwing 'Shade' at Meghan Markle

Buckingham Palace has been accused of trolling Meghan Markle after promoting their own brand of strawberry preserve as the duchess continues to make headlines with her exclusive jars of jam.

On Wednesday, the Buckingham Palace Shop Instagram page received comments suggesting it had thrown "epic shade" at Meghan, after it uploaded an 18-second video showcasing four ways in which consumers could use their "strawberry preserve."

"Our Strawberry Preserve is made using only the finest berries and is delicious served in a variety of ways 🍓," the post was captioned. "Some of our favourite ways are shown here: ✔️ On a scone as part of a cream tea ✔️ On a crumpet ✔️ With a croissant ✔️ On toast. How do you enjoy your strawberry preserve? Let us know in the comments!"

The Buckingham Palace Shop is run by the Royal Collection Trust and profits are used to maintain the Royal Collection, which features over a million objects of fine and decorative arts, as well as managing and operating public access to royal residences.

The shop sells jars of its branded strawberry preserve for £3.95 ($4.93).

The post received a number of comments from both fans and critics of the monarchy and Meghan, who since stepping down as a working royal in 2020 has spoken out against the spread of online hate.

"Is it just me that loves the subtle shade?😆😎," wrote one Instagram user of the post.

"Wait! Did the Palace just subtly troll Ms. Montecito?! 😂," wrote another, referencing the California neighborhood where Meghan lives with Prince Harry, and where she has based her new American Riviera Orchard lifestyle brand.

Some users defended the duchess, suggesting that the palace shop acted improperly with the post.

"Very tacky, low blow, that was entirely immature and [unnecessary]. I thought Buckingham [Palace] was supposed to exude class and grace. Guess not," wrote one user.

Another said: "I will enjoy the Duchess of [Sussex's] jam before your massed produced slight on her. You show your true colors. I [used] to respect the Royal Family and [now] no longer do."

When approached by Newsweek, representatives for The Royal Collection declined to comment.

Newsweek approached representatives of the Duchess of Sussex via email for comment.

The battle of the royal jams comes as Meghan has consistently made headlines over the past week as celebrity friends have posted about her exclusive run of 50 numbered jars of the preserve.

A small number of the 50 jars, emblazoned with the duchess' American Riviera Orchard branding, have been posted by their A-list recipients, the most recent being Kris Jenner.

Included in the shortlist of Meghan's jam pals are writer Mindy Kaling, actress Tracee Ellis Ross, the duchess' Suits co-star Abigail Spencer and Tracy Robbins, the wife of Paramount Studios president Brian Robbins.

The jar distribution followed the soft-launch of the American Riviera Orchard brand in March with a slick website and Instagram page featuring a short teaser trailer showing Meghan posing in a kitchen and mansion hallway.

Little information about the brand, its vision and public offering has so far been released. What is known has been garnered from trademark applications that have been filed to protect the name in relation to the sale of lifestyle products ranging from stationery and yoga mats, to dog food, tableware, jams and jellies.

Meghan's American Riviera Orchard jam is not currently available to purchase and it is not yet known if it will be offered to the public.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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