WELCH’S GOES KOSHER FOR PASSOVER WITH MANISCHEWITZ

FROM START UP ISRAEL ON LINE EDITION ARTICLE BY URIEL HEILMAN

Welch’s going kosher for Passover

In the kosher grape juice market, Kedem by the Royal Wine Corp. rules supreme. It’s practically the only grape juice found in the kosher aisles at supermarkets — and even at kosher grocers.

But Welch’s, which controls a majority of the non-kosher US grape juice market, is muscling its way in with the launch of a jointly branded Welch’s-Manischewitz kosher-for-Passover grape juice. Slated to hit shelves in January, Welch’s new 100 percent grape juice will also be kosher for year-round use, including for sacramental purposes like Kiddush and Havdalah.

Though Welch’s regular grape juice will not carry kosher certification and its new line is being targeted at the kosher-for-Passover market, those bottles may find buyers throughout the year.

“We certainly will be price competitive, and based on the quality of Welch’s and the fact that it’s made without anything artificially added to it, we think it’s going to be the best value to the Jewish consumer,” Manischewitz CEO David Sugarman told JTA.