Consumer Information

Coca Cola Freestyle Machines - Freestyle machines of the Coca Cola company enable the consumer to mix a variety of soft drink flavors of his/her own personal choice. All flavors available in the freeestyle machines in the United States and Canada are products of the Coca Cola Company. The OU confirms that they are all produced under the certification of the Orthodox Union and are kosher pareve.

Consumer Alerts

Dunkin Donuts - As many in the community have either seen and/or heard, a new Dunkin Donuts store is opening in Pikesville at 1101 Reisterstown Road (corner of Sudbrook Lane). Please note this new location is NOT Kosher Certified and, in fact, will be serving non-kosher items such as real bacon, sausages, etc.

Both Dunkin Donut locations at Colonial Village and Old Court Road continue to be Kosher Certified by Rabbi Sholom Salfer.

Kirkland’s chocolate chips are labeled OU-D. However, in fact they should be considered DE (Dairy Equipment).

Sunkist Breakfast Expresso Trail Mix and Sunkist Mango Dark Chocolate Trail Mix sold at Walmart stores and distributed by Snack It Forward (Los Angeles, CA) have been mislabeled with a plain OK kosher symbol instead of the OK-D (Dairy) designation.

Listerine Pocketpaks Breath Strips is Kof-K certified and bears the Kof-K symbol on the back of the card. However, Listerine PocketMist spray is not certified and does not bear a Kof-K symbol.

Kind Bars - Many varieties of Kind bars that previously contained milk and were marked OU-D have now been reformulated without milk and are pareve, bearing a plain OU symbol. As a result, there is currently a mixture of old OU-D and new OU product, even of the same varieties, on the store shelves. Furthermore, the dairy/pareve information on the outer display box often does not correspond to the marking on the individual bars in that box. The OU has stated that the label on the individual bars reflect their correct status. Each bar should be checked. (It is also recommended to read the ingredient listing on the bar to check for dairy ingredients.)

Produce from Israel in Neighborhood Stores - Please be aware that clementines, peppers, and other fruits and vegetables from Israel are consistently being sold in the Baltimore area at produce markets in our neighborhood, as well as across the U.S. From the numerous inquiries we have received, it is apparent that many consumers are unaware of this issue when shopping for produce. The package or labels state, “Product of Israel”. These vegetables are not considered shmitta produce but still require that tithing be taken (without a brocha). The fruits are considered shmitta produce and require special handling. If one bought these items, they should contact their local Orthodox rabbi for further guidance. Seven Mile Market in Baltimore is monitored by STAR-K, and produce sold there does not have this issue.