Since World War II, Kraut has, in the English language, come to be used as a derogatory term for a German. This is probably based on Sauerkraut, which was very popular in German cuisine at that time. The stereotype of the sauerkraut-eating German dates back to long before this time, though, as can for example be seen in Jules Verne’s depiction of the evil German industrialist Schultz as an avid sauerkraut eater in "The Begum's Millions".

Maybe, the origin is somewhat older: Raw sauerkraut is an excellent source of Vitamin C. Captain James Cook always took a store of sauerkraut on his sea voyages, since experience had taught him that it was an effective remedy against scurvy. Later, on British ships, sauerkraut was mostly replaced by limes (for the same purpose). But German sailors continued with the use of kraut, calling their British colleagues "limies" and being similarly called "krauts".