Kosher Certification
Fri., March 26, 1999
There are several reasons why Passover certification is only for a limited time. For one, substituting ingredients can be costly. In Coke's case, cane sugar is more expensive than corn syrup for year-round use. Moreover, Passover production limits the kinds of products that a company can make and/or risks cross-contamination of Passover products with non-certifiable ones. Frozen vegetables provide a good example of this. A frozen assortment of broccoli and carrots could potentially be certified for Passover, but because it is handled by the same equipment that puts out the frozen vegetable-pasta combinations, it is not. Lastly, there is simply no demand for Passover products other than for one week out of the year.
Strictly speaking, all prohibited foods must be removed from a Jewish household during Passover. This explains why even things like mousetraps, which may use a grain-based bait, and orthodontic rubber bands, which may be coated with corn starch, are often not certifiable for this holiday. For a list of Kosher for Passover products and for more information on the holiday's food guidelines, consult the following Web sites: http://www.ok.org/pasconsumer59.html or http://www.kashrut.com. --R. W.