Posted by Menachem Lubinsky on September 7, 2010 under Kosher, Rosh Hashana | 
On the eve of Rosh Hashanah, we are pleased to bring you several breaking stories and many important new developments in the kosher food industry. For starters, the closure of 25 A&P brand stores is destined to create realignment in kosher retail in many markets. Read why kosher sources do not believe that this will be such a bad thing…I am pleased to share the very inspiring story of an Irish-American who may very well be the architect of the modern-day mega kosher food section in supermarkets…What a difference a year makes? Especially when it comes to kosher meat and poultry…Yes, we told you so. A hummus war is underway…FreshDirect is taking a new aggressive tact to attract kosher on-line shoppers…Tova Ross reports that if you eat kosher and are going to college this Fall, there may be a restaurant for you…A kosher cooking maven goes on line to network with others who enjoy kosher cooking…If you’re in a supermarket and see someone with a camera in the kosher section, it just may be KosherEye.com…A New Year deserves many good new kosher wines and we have the update from Royal/Kedem…In My Sixth Sense, I look at why the airlines still can’t get it right when it comes to kosher…Tova Ross in her New Product Showcase looks at the new Hummus from Tribe.
On behalf of all of us at KosherToday, Kosherfest, Diversified Business Communication, and LUBICOM Marketing Consulting, we wish you a Shana Tova, a year of health and prosperity.
Menachem Lubinsky
Posted by admin on July 27, 2010 under Kashrus Organization |
New York…With the addition of hundreds of new kosher products comes a drawback that has many kashrus sources and ordinary consumers on edge. It seems that as the number of products increase so do the number of alerts that appear in Anglo Jewish newspapers, kosher certification agency newsletters, and the blogs that routinely cover such alerts. The alerts typically involve an unauthorized usage of a kosher symbol as was the case with Snapple recently when its certifier, OK Kosher Certification, alerted customers that the 24 pack – 20 oz plastic bottles of Snapple had been incorrectly labeled OK Pareve. It appeared that while most of the flavors were kosher, the Fruit Punch was not. Another advisory referred to JELL-O Strawberry Cheesecake Snacks produced by Kraft Foods which the OK does not certify because it contains gelatin. The issues with kosher certification are as widespread with larger manufacturers as they are with smaller ones.
Also of concern is changed status of restaurants and retail establishments. In Chicago, the cRc had to warn customers that it no longer certified many Red Mango stores around the country. Changes in certification at many eating establishments routinely occur but in many cases the stores are left without certification. Kashrus agencies say they are noticing an increased volume of calls to their consumer hotlines. One rabbi told Kosher Today that the calls begin the minute that there “is any kind of buzz about the kashrus status of a product or eating establishment.”
Posted by Menachem Lubinsky on June 23, 2010 under Kosher Stores |
New York…The dramatic expansion of kosher into Club Stores continues to be a big story in the kosher food industry. But of late, a leading kosher distributor told Kosher Today, “there has been a great deal of activity in drugstore chains.” In what appears to be a growing trend, drugstore chains are expanding their food sections, and in areas that cater to kosher consumers, they are including Chalav Yisrael milk, cheeses, snacks and candies, in addition to the normal compliment of foods like cereals and beverage. CVS is the latest drugstore chain to try to stake a claim for a bigger piece of the nation’s trillion-dollar food budget. The Woonsocket, R.I.-based company will double the size of food sections in 3,000 of its 7,000 stores by year’s end. The distributor says that kosher food is already available at many Wal-Greens stores in such cities as New York and Miami. He plans to add a salesman “to cover the drugstore world.” The drugstores offer consumers the option of quick shopping and convenient store hours, which is why the distributor believes that drugstores will become a major source for kosher foods in the next five years.
Posted by Menachem Lubinsky on June 8, 2010 under Kosher Restaurants |
New York…by Staff Reporters…Should a kashrus agency certify a kosher restaurant that also has a non-kosher restaurant by the same name? For one would-be diner the answer is a clear no as he almost ate at the non-kosher eatery just because a kosher restaurant Web site took him to the site of the non-kosher eatery with only a minor mention buried in the copy that they also have a kosher restaurant. The mistake was ultimately corrected but many who were involved questioned whether the major kashrus organization certifying the restaurant should have given the certification in the first place. A New York area Vaad’s refusal to certify a Dunkin Donuts franchise was criticized by some but the Vaad maintains that there is much that is not kosher in the franchise names that share space with the Dunkin Donuts. The growing role of the Internet as a major source for kosher restaurants is a new reason for tightening up oversight to avoid confusion, say several rabbis reached by Kosher Today. Said one: “I guess agencies and rabbis will now have to check Web sites and links to make sure that there is no confusion.” In as far away places as Buenos Aires, the potential confusion has become an issue. A group of American tourists in Buenos Aires complained that the glatt kosher McDonald’s is in a mall that has several other McDonald’s restaurants despite the fact that the kosher McDonald’s has a large kosher sign in the middle of the logo. The Buenos Aires McDonald’s is the only glatt kosher eatery of the international food icon. The potential for confusion, say kashrus sources, could be an issue with any brand that produces both kosher and non-kosher and even if the same is produced with different kashrus standards. While many were forgiving about the restaurant error, they were also hoping that kashrus certifiers would also take precautions so that such confusions do not occur.
Posted by Menachem Lubinsky on May 27, 2010 under Kosher Technology |
New York…by Tova Ross, Kosher Today Features Editor…Keeping kosher is becoming easier, thanks to a number of high tech innovations. Kosher adherents can already use an Apple app “My Grocery Master” to search a database of over 100,000 specialty foods for kosher products in their closest grocery stores. Now comes a new invention: a stick that can detect the presence of pork in any dish. The uni-cultural plastic stick can alert both kosher and Halal eaters to the prohibited pig by using antibodies that react with the non-kosher animal’s muscle tissue. Invented by scientists at the Kazakh National Center for Biotechnology, the stick may not be so necessary for kosher consumers in the US, who rely on some of the 1000 kosher-certifying agencies and rabbis as well as the FDA to properly ensure their food is not contaminated with pork products. Yet the stick comes in handy for Muslims in Kazakhstan (Islam is the dominant religion there), where chefs often use pork in supposedly Halal dishes because it is cheaper than many other meats. Sources told Kosher Today that the stick may be handy for Jews who keep kosher and are frequent travelers around the globe, where food certification standards are not always subject to the strict ones in place in the U.S.
While the stick may not be a practical everyday aid, iBless Food 1.0 by the Davka Corporation can come in more handy. iBless Food 1.0 is a resource guide for Hebrew blessings (brachos) for over 500 different foods. It allows for easy scrolling on an iPod, iPhone, or iPad to discover what type of blessing should be made over fruits, vegetables, and popular snacks and appetizers.
The blessing – both for before and after the food being eaten – is shown in both Hebrew and English transliteration and chanted aloud with each word highlighted as it is said. Additional information about the customs of that particular blessing is also shown.
Posted by Menachem Lubinsky on May 12, 2010 under Kosher |
Woodmere LI…by Tova Ross…The Five Towns may be amongst the most affluent Jewish regions in the country, but it is also an area with an increasing number of Jewish families who are struggling, Kosher Today has learned. The Jewish Community Center of the Greater Five Towns has had a kosher food pantry for nearly five years (thanks to funding from the UJA-Federation of New York) to provide struggling residents of the Five Towns with pantry staples and canned foods. But it was only recently that increased demand for assistance has necessitated a move from the JCC’s basement to a larger storefront on Central Avenue in Woodmere. Rina Shkolnik, the JCC’s executive director, said: “Five years ago, we served fifty, maybe sixty families a week. Two years ago, we served eighty five families. Last year we served 135, and this year, 150. With an average of four members to a family, that’s already over 500 people that don’t have enough food to eat.”
Shkolnik attributes the rising number of people in need to the still-struggling economy. “Many of these families that are suffering already have kids in yeshiva and mortgages to pay, and when those costs are taken care of, it often doesn’t leave enough for kosher food,” she explained. Basics like milk and meat are more expensive when they’re kosher, and when one member of the family lost his or her job, finding the money for things that have already been committed to doesn’t leave a lot of room to buy kosher meat or other typically more expensive basic foods.
The new JCC storefront – which opened in part by donations from the JCC’s board of directors – operates differently from the basement food pantry, from which community members could not frequent and only receive donation from deliveries. In the storefront, perishables and canned goods are still collected from both private donations and from bins placed in local supermarkets like Gourmet Glatt, Brach’s, and Supersol that ask shoppers to buy an extra item to donate, but the food is then stocked on shelves for those in need to come and “buy” as they “shop.” And, unlike its previous location, this storefront is equipped with freezers used solely to stock meat, so families who cannot afford kosher beef and chicken can still enjoy it. The storefront’s windows have shades to protect the privacy of families who come to “shop” there. The space is leased for two years, but hopefully, it won’t need that long for community members to get back on their feet.
Posted by Menachem Lubinsky on April 26, 2010 under Kosher Companies, Recession |
By Menachem Lubinsky
New York…The recession continues to have a significant impact on kosher food sales despite a perception that kosher food is “recession-proof,” Kosher Today has learned. In dozens of interviews with industry officials, it became clear that the buying habits of kosher consumers was markedly different this past Passover than it was just two or three years ago. “People are being squeezed on all sides” said a Boro Park retailer, “and they are more price conscious than ever.” He said that he observed that more customers were buying from lists rather than just impulse buying or walking up and down the aisles and picking up items. In nearby Flatbush where Pomegranate has set a new standard in shopping for kosher foods, there were many customers who now shop in multiple stores. A kosher blogger wrote: “I have learned to buy items at Pomegranate that cost about the same everywhere (i.e. many dairy products) and to save by buying at places like COSTCO, Paperific and the Kolel store.” The retailers say they are constantly reminded by customers of a breadwinner that has lost their job. Stores that recorded double-digit growth in 2008, said they only did 2% – 3% better on sales during Passover 2010 than they did in 2009. The same seemed to be true in kosher wines where many customers shunned the more expensive wines they routinely bought in 2008. The number of people relying on help from such charities as Met Council on Jewish Poverty, Tomchei Shabbos and Keren Aniyim as well as similar organizations in cities outside of New York also increased significantly.
Despite this disturbing development for the kosher food industry, sources say, the industry as a whole seems to have weathered the “pockets of downturns” well. They pointed to making up some of the slack with volume. “Natural growth has always helped the industry even in a down economy,” said one kosher food manufacturer. New items also continue to drive sales as younger kosher customers continue to show a strong desire to try new and interesting foods. While there is talk of a recovery, in the kosher food industry the recession still continues to take its toll.
Posted by Menachem Lubinsky on February 22, 2010 under Kosher, Kosher Stores |
By Menachem Lubinsky
Brooklyn…A Kosher Today story that the closure of Fruit Palace on Avenue J was due to the mounting debt of credit extended to customers in what is known as the “book,” was immediately challenged by local merchants, investors, and at least one distributor. The culprit, say the food officials, is Pomegranate, which has sharply curtailed traffic on the Flatbush commercial strip. One source told Kosher Today that most of the food stores “on the Avenue” were down between 30% – 40% since the large gourmet upscale supermarket opened only several blocks away in August 2008. An investor with Food Palace told Kosher Today that “orders on a typical Friday were down by nearly 40% in most of the food stores on Avenue J.” Yet, one source also noted that the book may have been a factor, noting that one account at Fruit Palace owed the store more than $70,000. A source close to nearby Blue Ribbon said that his book totaled more than $200,000. Another Flatbush store put his number at “somewhere between $140,000 – $160,000. But the food sources say that the book is not the reason for the doldrums at some of the stores as those payables have always existed. “It is clearly Pomegranate that has simply cut traffic on the avenue significantly,” said one source that has been on the avenue for over a quarter of a century. He added: “Look, we are trying to help our customers and when you wrote about the book, you neglected to mention how much free food we all give away. That’s what hurts so much. We’ve done so much for this community and suddenly many of them are gone, just like that.”
