Notes
2022-7-28 KosherGram PDF RITA’S ITALIAN ICE & FROZEN CUSTARD OF FARMINGTON HILLS at 11 Mile & Middlebelt is under supervision of the Vaad Harabbonim / Council of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater Detroit, as Dairy non-Cholov Yisroel. Many flavors of the Italian Ices contain only pareve ingredients, but may contain traces of dairy; a list is posted at the store. Cream Ices are Dairy. ICE CREAM and FROZEN YOGURT STORES often claim that they are Kosher and may post Kosher certification letters, which leads consumers to believe that the store and its products are under supervision. In fact, in most cases, the letters refer only to specific products or ingredients which are factory produced under supervision, and are certified only when in their original sealed packaging bearing Kosher marking. Once the unsupervised store opens the packaging, the certification is no longer valid. Unless the consumer verifies that there is actual on-site reliable Rabbinical supervision of the entire individual retail store, no ice cream, yogurt, syrups or toppings should be considered Kosher except for those in their original sealed containers bearing a reliable Kosher certification. The following are some stores in our area that are not under supervision: Clark’s Ice Cream and Yogurt, Haagen-Dazs, Menchie’s, Oberweis, and TCBY. It is always preferable to buy at fully supervised stores. Locally, soft serve Cholov Yisroel ice cream is available at Jerusalem Pizza and Soul Cafe. Hard pack Cholov Yisroel ice cream is available at Spreads Bagels & Café. Hard pack non-Cholov Yisroel ice cream and yogurt is available at Baskin-Robbins/Dunkin’ Donuts at 10 Mile & Greenfield in Oak Park (which is K-COR certified for all products). Packaged Cholov Yisroel ice cream is available at The Grove Kosher Market. If it is necessary to purchase hard pack ice cream or yogurt from an unsupervised store, the consumer should request and see a sealed container before it is opened, and check for the Kosher certification mark on the container. In addition, the scoop should be thoroughly washed. Soft serve ice cream or yogurt should not be purchased from an unsupervised store, because of the inability to verify that Kosher mix was put into the machine. THE FOLLOWING NEW SODAS ARE KOSHER, even without any Kashrus symbol: MOUNTAIN DEW FLAMIN’ HOT MOUNTAIN DEW PURPLE THUNDER MOUNTAIN DEW BAJA GOLD MOUNTAIN DEW BAJA MANGO GEM PEPPER DARK BERRY (regular and Zero Sugar) MOUNTAIN DEW KICKSTART, MOUNTAIN DEW ENERGY [formerly Mountain Dew “Rise” Energy], and MOUNTAIN DEW GAME FUEL ENERGY DRINKS contain grape juice [except for Game Fuel “Zero” varieties], and are acceptable only when bearing a K or a recognized Kosher symbol, or when bearing the letters XG in the middle of the second line of the inkjet code on bottom of the can. Other Mountain Dew products that are produced in the USA, Canada, and Mexico are acceptable without any symbol or code. New FRUITWORKS REAL SUGAR MANGO LEMONADE FCB Slurpee syrup is Kosher and pareve (no symbol required). The label on the syrup box in the back must be checked to verify the brand and flavor. GATORADE ZERO THIRST QUENCHER in Grape and Fruit Punch flavors in 12 oz., 20 oz. and 28 oz. bottles is OU certified and pareve, even though the labels currently do not bear the OU symbol. GATORADE ZERO “WITH PROTEIN” THIRST QUENCHER in 16.9 oz. bottles contains whey, a dairy ingredient, and bears OU-D. THE CHODOSH SEASON is fast approaching for Oats, Spring Wheat and Barley. Oats may be Chodosh by approximately August 3, Spring Wheat by August 12, and Barley by August 15. There may be shortages of Yoshon grain this year. Those who want to purchase Yoshon items to store over the Chodosh season should do so now. Please note that all grain and flour products that will be stored should be refrigerated to avoid insect infestation. TRADER JOE’S ORGANIC POPS lollipops in retail bags with a Kof-K symbol have been discontinued. The lollipops that are being offered locally to children at the checkout counters are currently coming in to Trader Joe’s in bulk with no Kosher marking, and should not be accepted as Kosher. ALDI’S EARTH GROWN brand DAIRY FREE SHREDDED MOZZARELLA and EARTH GROWN DAIRY FREE CHEDDAR STYLE SHREDS products are being sold in two versions, from two different suppliers. One version is Kosher and correctly bears OU Pareve; the other version is not Kosher, and does not bear an OU. This situation is being corrected with the non-Kosher version being discontinued. Check each package carefully for the OU symbol. ALDI’S FROZEN BROCCOLI, SPINACH and CAULIFLOWER products, sold under the Simply Nature and Season’s Choice brands, products of Mexico, and Aldi’s SIMPLY NATURE OIL SPRAYS (Coconut, Avocado, Olive, Grapeseed) bear an MK symbol (an MK in a circle, with the word Kosher in Hebrew and English inside the circle to the right of the K) in some regions. Consumers should be aware that this is not the MK of Montreal or Manchester. KROGER HEARTY VEGETABLE READY TO SERVE SOUP in an 18.8 oz. can is still pictured on Kroger’s website with an OU symbol, but the actual product does not bear an OU, and lost its Kosher status two years ago. SMUCKER’S UNCRUSTABLES SANDWICHES: OU certification of these products, in all flavors, will be discontinued over the next few months due to supply chain issues. Packaging which still bears the OU symbol is Kosher. Check each package carefully. GOLD NUT NATURAL DRIED GUAVA (Discs) have been found to be infested, and should not be used. Consumers are advised to return products to the point of purchase. B&G GHERKINS UPDATE: The Star-K has identified an additional lot of B&G Gherkins found to contain insect infestation. The following are the affected lot codes (printed on the side of the lid). These lots should not be used: #25021 – Best By Feb 25 2023 #09031 – Best By Mar 09 2023 #24061 – Best By Jun 24 2023 #25061 – Best byJun 25 2023 – newly identified Consumers of other lots currently on the market are advised to slice open each gherkin to check for possible infestation. METAMUCIL PRODUCTS INFORMATION from Star-K: Consumers are advised that new Metamucil Fiber + Collagen Peptides Rejuvenation Blend contains collagen, which is a non-Kosher ingredient, and is not approved for use. Consumers are also advised that Metamucil Psyllium Fiber Capsules contain gelatin, a non-Kosher ingredient. While Metamucil products are not certified, the Star-K site previously listed “All Powders” as being approved. That information has since been updated. The Metamucil powders listed below are currently approved: Real Sugar Orange Real Sugar Orange Smooth Real Sugar Unflavored Coarse Sugar-Free Berry Smooth Sugar-Free Orange Sugar-Free Orange Smooth Sugar-Free Unflavored Smooth ENJOY LIFE brand SEA SALT LENTIL CHIPS are certified cRc D.E. (dairy equipment). Some packages were mistakenly labeled cRc Pareve. JEWEL OSCO brand FROSTED SUGAR COOKIES, produced by Granny B’s cookies, mistakenly bear an OU on some labels. These cookies contain carmine, an insect derived coloring. DELL’ ALPE brand MARINARA SAUCE bears an unauthorized cRc symbol and is not Kosher. McCLURE’S BAKERY BUTTER & EGG DINNER ROLL and CHEESE BREAD products are not OU certified. Some labels bear an unauthorized OU symbol. PREMIUM FOOD SOURCE BAMBOO SHOOTS, distributed by Limson Trading, Inc. (64 oz. can), bears an unauthorized Kof-K symbol. PRODUCT RECALLS ENJOY LIFE PRODUCTS RECALL: Many Enjoy Life brand Soft Baked Cookies, Chewy Bars, Breakfast Ovals and Brownie Bites with specific Best By dates have been recalled due to the potential presence of hard plastic pieces in the products. Details are available at https://enjoylifefoods.com/blogs/test/important-product-announcement or 855-543-5335. TRADER JOE’S SOFT-BAKED SNICKERDOODLES COOKIES with Best By date 2/03/2023 has been recalled due to the potential presence of hard plastic pieces in the product. Details are available at https://www.traderjoes.com/home/announcements?category=recalls&id=1351820848 or 626-599-3817.