Passover Shopping Cautions
February 26, 2020 from the Kashrut.com editor:
- Similar products with and without kitniot next to each other. Mustard (which is kitniot) next to faux mustard which isn't. (see pictures)
- Products mistakenly placed in the Passover section which do not bear Passover certification. Many products come is both Passover-certified and everyday varieties. The UPC code is the same and the person stocking the shelves may notice the difference.
- Snack confusion: peanut snack being sold next to another snack from the same company. The peanut snack is for Sephardim and the other pizza flavored snack is certified by the OU for Ashkenazim ( and Sephardim as well).
When shopping for Passover, consumers need to check each item for the appropriate Passover certification.
PRE-PESACH SHOPPING ADVICE
February 28, 2020 from the COR Detroit:
When shopping for Pesach products, each individual label should always be checked for Pesach certification. Consumers are cautioned not to take for granted that a product is Kosher for Pesach simply because it is in the Kosher for Pesach section of their store, or because a "Kosher for Pesach" sign is posted. Each year there are numerous instances, even in Jewish stores, of non-Pesach products mistakenly being mixed in with Pesach products, usually because their labels are almost identical. This occurs frequently with Telma soup mixes and cubes, Lieber’s dressings and Coat ‘n Bake coatings, various brands of frozen chopped liver and kishke, and Osem, Gefen, Haddar, Manischewitz, Empire and other brands of products that have both Pesach and non-Pesach versions of the same products with similar labels.
Storekeepers, likewise, should not take for granted that everything received in their Pesach shipment, even from a Jewish distributor, is indeed Pesach certified; non-Pesach products are frequently inadvertently mixed in. There have also been instances where the outsides of cases were marked Kosher for Pesach, but the products inside were not. Each individual label must always be checked for Pesach certification.
Some brands, e.g. Osem, do not bear the same certification on all of their products. Each product should be checked for a reliable certification. - In addition, some brands, especially those from Israel, bear more than one certification on a single package, but not all those certifications include approval for Pesach. In particular, the Badatz of Eida Hachareidis symbol often states specifically that its endorsement does not include Pesach. All products should be carefully examined for a reliable Pesach endorsement. - Some products bear a non-Pesach certification printed on the label, and have an added stamp (often on the lid) saying Kosher for Pesach, but with no identification of the certifying organization. These should not be relied upon.