Facebook Bans Several Food Emoji For Being Too Dang Sexy

After years of being plagued by lascivious fruits and vegetables, Facebook and Instagram are saying, "No more."

Last summer, Facebook quietly updated its community standards language on permissible sexual expression to include a ban on "[commonly used] sexual emojis or emoji strings," which can mean only one thing: no more eggplants and peaches. This was discovered recently by adult news site XBIZ, who reported that in addition to sexy plants, nudes with emoji or any digital alteration covering the naughty bits could get an account flagged or removed, as well as links to adult entertainment websites.

Explaining its rationale, Facebook stated that it was drawing the line at any content that facilitates sexual encounters between adults, but while they say the new rules are in place to prevent "sexual solicitation" others aren't convinced. XBIZ writes, "Reports of bans for “Sexual Solicitation” seem to show a pattern of the company specifically targeting sex workers, including those who take pains to abide by the general spirit of the community standards." For example, porn star Kendra James says she was banned after telling a man demanding free nudes that pornography is her job and he could join her site.

The new guidelines are yet another blow against sex workers who use social media to promote their content, as well another step to turning two of the world's most popular platforms into a highly regulated conversational space. However, while we might be seeing less eggplants and peaches underneath thirst traps, others are realizing the sexy potential of other emoji.

Sexual use of the #eggplant & #peach #emojis are now #banned on #Facebook & #Instagram. This is actually gr8 news for the banana, carrot, hotdog, taco, & donut emoji to finally make their debut. You know how long these guys have been waiting in the wings for their time to shine? pic.twitter.com/vEZxZHinXk

— Alan Boccadoro (@bocc1_) October 29, 2019