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Kosher Gummy Bears

Kosher Gummy Bears - www.cagummybears.com

Kosher Gummy Bears

It’s time to indulge in California Gummy Bear’s knowing that it was carefully Koshered. Look no further for a delectable gummy bear treat that is both compliant with Jewish food purity standards and tastes spectacular. Even if you don’t follow a strict Kosher diet, you can enjoy California Gummy Bears knowing they are crafted from healthy and humane sources. If you are curious about what it means that our gummy bears are Kosher, keep reading. 

What does Kosher mean?

If food is Kosher, it complies with Jewish dietary laws. “Kosher” is a Hebrew word that is both an adjective and a verb. As an adjective, it means “satisfying the requirements of Jewish law.” As a verb, “to Kosher” means “to prepare food according to the requirements of Jewish law.” “Kashrut” is the noun form of Kosher. It is “the body of Jewish religious laws concerning the suitability of food, the use of ritual objects, etc.” Now that we have the definitions out of the way, let’s talk about how these strict dietary laws came to be and exist in society today.

The basics of Kosher

The ultimate purpose of Kashrut is to comply with the Divine Will laid out in the Torah, the Jewish sacred text containing the first five books of the Hebrew bible. Religious leaders interpreted these books to form a set of complex requirements relating to three main food categories:

  1. Meat (fleishig): mammals, birds, or any byproducts of such animals
  2. Dairy (milchig): dairy products such as milk, butter, cheese, and yogurt
  3. Pareve: any non-meat or dairy foods, including fish, eggs, wine, and plant-based foods

Everything from the preparation method, equipment, and serving combinations of these food groups has Kosher requirements. For example, meat and dairy are never to be paired together in a meal. If utensils touched a dairy product, they are then considered dairy and forbidden to be used to eat meat products. 

When it comes to meat, the Torah requires specific slaughtering practices. The slaughterer himself, called the schocet in Hebrew, must be trained and certified by rabbinic authorities. During the Jewish festival, Passover, even stricter standards apply. Of course, there are so many more requirements and traditional Jewish practices than just these few in Kashrut. Purity and hygiene standards of the Kosher tradition have benefited Jewish people for thousands of years.

Kosher in the modern world

Today, Kosher laws have been adapted to fit modern technology. For a food to be labeled Kosher for Passover certified, it must comply, from start to finish, with a complex set of standards and regulations, all of which are based on the Torah’s Divine laws. 

In the United States, products labeled “Kosher” come with the assurance that the product follows the Torah’s dietary requirements. With advancements in food and chemical science, new chemicals exist today that weren’t outlined explicitly in the Torah. Lawmakers and religious leaders have adapted food regulation laws so that even these new methods and chemicals comply with Kashrut.  

Health Benefits of going Kosher

Eating Kosher is good for you and good for the planet. A Kosher diet has been shown to help lower cholesterol, improve digestion, and reduce allergens. This is because of the strict requirements for food raised and processed in natural, clean, and humane environments. It’s a way of eating that brings us close to the way nature intended humans to eat. The body tends to agree with this and in turn, you’ll feel and look healthier.

Kosher food is some of the cleanest and highest-quality food you can find. The inspection process for Kosher foods is rigorous. Plants and animals won’t be approved unless they are verified to be free of illnesses, lesions, bugs, worms, or any other potentially harmful agents. 

Kosher standards also dictate careful and sustainable slaughter practices. When you eat Kosher animal products, you can rest easy knowing the animals died with dignity and respect. Specialized slaughterers must sacrifice the animals’ lives as quickly and painfully as possible by Kosher standards. Kosher law promotes honoring the land and animals which give their energy to us as fuel. Food that is treated better from conception to completion has higher nutritional value for your body and regenerative properties for the planet. 

Kosher Gummy Bears 

Gummy bears are one of the world’s most beloved confections. They date back to the 1920s when German confectioner Hans Riegel founded Haribo, the popular gummy candy label that still exists today. The star ingredient in gummy bears - the ingredient that makes them “gummy” - is gelatin.

What is gelatin? 

Gelatin is a flavorless, colorless substance made by processing animal bones, cartilage, and skin to extract collagen protein. Typically, gelatin is reduced and sold as a powder, which, when mixed with warm water, turns back into a jelly-like substance. It’s a great vehicle for flavor and texture used in many foods. 

Gelatin is high in protein, mainly thanks to collagen. You may be surprised to find that it’s very healing to consume gelatin - mixed into foods of course. There are many benefits of consuming gelatinous foods. The proteins and amino acids in gelatin encourage gut health, skin health, and bone strength. 

Plant-based gelatin sources exist too. Pectin and agar agar are two common vegan substitutes for gelatin. They have similar properties to gelatin. They are flavorless powders that turn gelatinous when mixed with liquid. Pectin is derived from fruit skins while agar agar is extracted from seaweed. 

Kosher gelatin vs. regular gelatin

As an animal-based product, Kosher laws apply to gelatin. Regular gelatin may be derived from a variety of animal sources and processes. The most common of these are processing the bones, cartilage, and skin of cows and fish. When gelatin is not Kosher, you can’t guarantee that it will be pure and taste neutral. Some non-Kosher gelatins come with a rotten or fishy taste. 

Commercial gelatins may come with certifications such as “organic” or “grass-fed.” However, unless it has a “Kosher” label, it isn’t guaranteed to have followed Kosher laws throughout its lifecycle. In other words, it doesn’t have the label, it’s not Kosher. 

To be labeled Kosher, gelatin must be made from pure Kosher sources from start to finish. This means that the animal source must be Kosher and butchered according to Kosher standards. Any associated products and equipment used in the extraction process must also be purely Kosher. Plant-based Kosher ingredients can be Kosher too as long as the harvesting, processing, and extraction comply with Kosher food laws. If all elements of the gelatin process are Kosher, then the gelatin package gets its stamp of Kosher approval. 

Our Kosher Gummy Bears 

At California Gummy Bears, our gelatin is 100% cow-based Kosher. This means you can guarantee the pleasant gummy chew and delicious flavors knowing the gelatin source is Kosher. We also make organic vegan gummies with 100% plant-based Kosher ingredients. We’re proud to offer sweet treats that are accessible to all people, regardless of their beliefs and religious practices. Jewish or not, you’ll love our gummy bears and be confident in our pure sourcing and processing. Our organic, sustainable, and Kosher gummy blends offer a healthy and delightful new twist on gummy bears. 

References

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/what-is-Kosher#bottom-line

https://ouKosher.org/the-Kosher-primer/

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/319124#risks

https://www.bonappetit.com/entertaining-style/pop-culture/article/history-gummy-bears

https://www.cagummybears.com/pages/Kosher

https://www.delightedcooking.com/what-are-the-benefits-of-eating-Kosher.htm#:~:text=Eating%20Kosher%20foods%20is%20beneficial,law%20dictates%20careful%20slaughter%20practices.

https://www.delightedcooking.com/what-is-Kosher-gelatin.htm








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