People Are Scrambling To Find Coca-Cola Bottles With Yellow Lids

Stembolt

if you spot a bottle of Coca-Cola with a yellow cap, that means it’s sweetened with real cane sugar

They do this during a very short time a year around Passover because interestingly, Kosher Jewish people can’t have corn during the Passover time. So Coke makes a special real sugar edition just like the Mexican Coke version that you know and love that you pay extra for

telcodad

Is Soda Kosher for Passover?
Soda is not one of the forbidden grains, but there are still concerns about consuming it on the holiday.
https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/is-soda-kosher-for-passover/

Is it OK to drink soda on Passover? Well, it depends.

Soda is basically water and sugar with additional (usually artificial) flavorings added. There’s no grain and there’s no fermentation, so soda would not qualify as hametz and therefore should present no problem for Passover consumption.

There are two concerns however. One is the general issue of processed foods, which are produced in factories with equipment that may be used for hametz products. As a result, many traditionally observant Jews will only consume processed food on Passover that is explicitly labeled kosher for Passover.

The other issue is the sweetener. In the United States, soda is often sweetened not with cane sugar but with corn syrup. Corn is not one of the five prohibited Passover grains, but it does fall into the category of kitniyot, which is historically forbidden to Ashkenazi Jews. (The Conservative movement reversed this ban in 2015.)

Also:

Is Pepsi kosher for Passover?

Standard Pepsi:
Regular Pepsi and Diet Pepsi are not inherently kosher for Passover because they may contain corn syrup, which is a grain and therefore not allowed during Passover.

Passover-Specific Versions:
Pepsi, like Coca-Cola, produces versions of its drinks sweetened with sucrose (cane sugar) that are certified kosher for Passover.

Look for Certification:
To ensure you’re purchasing a kosher for Passover Pepsi product, look for the appropriate kosher certification symbols on the product label.

Yellow Cap:
Some kosher for Passover Coca-Cola products have yellow caps to differentiate them from the regular formula.

Other Brands:
In addition to Coca-Cola and Pepsi, other brands like Dr. Brown’s also offer kosher for Passover versions of their products.

egeezer

I’d really like to find a real Kosher deli in Columbus and Dayton OH - something like the former Rascal’s in North Miami.

The closest I can come is Katzinger’s in downtown Cbus.

Donoreo

This is not new. It has been done for years.

Stembolt

Donoreo This is not new. It has been done for years.

The post was meant as a reminder (that time of year) for those who were interested. No one claimed it was new.

dave

So let me get this straight - most of the time they sell a crap product, because people buy the crap no matter what. Occasionally, because there’s a temporary opportunity to keep selling crap to a group that would avoid the crap for a while, they sell something slightly less crappy. And people get all excited about it?

real_aurgathor

Just how much of a taste difference is between corn syrupy and sugary coca colas?

I’ve been to Mexico and had some coke there, and it didn’t taste any different than the US version of coke. However, I must admit I’ve never tried an A-B test between them.

broknsymetry

real_aurgathor Just how much of a taste difference is between corn syrupy and sugary coca colas?

None or little, the real difference is the snob appeal.

GrumpyCanadian

telcodad Corn is not one of the five prohibited Passover grains,

telcodad are not inherently kosher for Passover because they may contain corn syrup, which is a grain and therefore not allowed during Passover.

Am I imagining things, or are these two statements somewhat contradictory?

There was also the part of the quote that mentions the production lines possibly having been used for products with disallowed ingredients. Does this mean that there is a procedure of cleaning the equipment before producing the “certified kosher” version, or is there a separate line? What makes the “real sugar” version certified? Is there a religious oversight body involved that gives its sign-off? I ask because I wouldn’t trust these companies. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they stuck the appropriate symbol on the bottles and changed the cap without going through the rest of the process; after all that costs money!

telcodad

GrumpyCanadian telcodad Corn is not one of the five prohibited Passover grains,

telcodad are not inherently kosher for Passover because they may contain corn syrup, which is a grain and therefore not allowed during Passover.

Am I imagining things, or are these two statements somewhat contradictory?

telcodad Corn is not one of the five prohibited Passover grains, but it does fall into the category of kitniyot, which is historically forbidden to Ashkenazi Jews. (The Conservative movement reversed this ban in 2015.)

real_aurgathor

GrumpyCanadian Does this mean that there is a procedure of cleaning the equipment before producing the “certified kosher” version, or is there a separate line?

No need for a separate line or a through cleaning either.

They could conceivably put US labels on coke in Mexico and ship them to the US (before April 2nd)
On US lines, they can just just change the sugar source, and have the first few hundred bottles capped with the normal cap, and then start using the yellow cap once corn syrup is washed out of the line.

Personally, I’m not fully sure about the often strong negative feelings about HFCS – HFCS 55 (the one used for soft drinks) is 55% fructose and the rest is mostly glucose while cane sugar is 100% sucrose. But sucrose is a disaccharide made up of one glucose and one fructose molecule, so once it gets into the body, it is 50-50.

BTW, HFCS 55 is slightly sweeter than sucrose so they can use slightly less for the same sweetness.
https://www.nutrientsreview.com/articles/sweeteners.html

px_eliezer_

broknsymetry

Corn syrup is used less in Canada (where it is called glucose-fructose syrup) compared to the USA.

px_eliezer_

real_aurgathor They could conceivably put US labels on coke in Mexico and ship them to the US (before April 2nd)
On US lines, they can just just change the sugar source, and have the first few hundred bottles capped with the normal cap, and then start using the yellow cap once corn syrup is washed out of the line.

That’s missing an important point.

The purpose for the switch is religious, because for many observant Jewish people corn (and other “kitniyot” like beans and rice) are forbidden during the 8 days of Pesach/Passover.

This is especially the case among the growing Orthodox population, and is still followed by many other Jewish people especially of Ashkenazi heritage as opposed to Sephardic.

Anyone doing it for religious reasons pretty much by definition would want the product to be certified by a recognized (eg Orthodox) rabbinical certifying agency (such as the OU—Orthodox Union).

The Rabbis do not do shortcuts for Passover Coca-Cola, nor would you want shortcuts at a Bris (circumcision). 🙂

broknsymetry

px_eliezer_ nor would you want shortcuts at a Bris

I thought a Bris is a “short cut”.

GrumpyCanadian

px_eliezer_ Anyone doing it for religious reasons pretty much by definition would want the product to be certified by a recognized (eg Orthodox) rabbinical certifying agency (such as the OU—Orthodox Union).

Do you have any idea of what the certifying authority would be looking for? What would it take to convince them that the line is free of residual forbidden grain?

Astyanax

px_eliezer_ Anyone doing it for religious reasons pretty much by definition would want the product to be certified by a recognized (eg Orthodox) rabbinical certifying agency (such as the OU—Orthodox Union).

The Rabbis do not do shortcuts for Passover Coca-Cola, nor would you want shortcuts at a Bris (circumcision). 🙂

God’s watchin’ the coke bottling factory too you know! 😉

Astyanax

dave So let me get this straight - most of the time they sell a crap product, because people buy the crap no matter what. Occasionally, because there’s a temporary opportunity to keep selling crap to a group that would avoid the crap for a while, they sell something slightly less crappy. And people get all excited about it?

First let’s establish that soda made with any ingredients is “crap”. If you can reduce the production cost of the product without ruining the taste of it then you hit a home run which is what Coke did by changing from sugar to HFCS. HFCS is cheaper than sugar by a pretty good margin.

Economic factors contribute notably to its usage, with production costs for HFCS generally ranging from $0.20 to $0.30 per pound compared to $0.40 to $0.50 per pound for cane sugar.

https://bytebridge.medium.com/high-fructose-corn-syrup-report-overview-5fbe23d3ccec

dave

Astyanax

First let’s establish that soda made with any ingredients is “crap”.

Not much argument from me on that. I do drink a little ginger ale, a little tonic water, not much else in the ‘soda’ line.

px_eliezer_

GrumpyCanadian Do you have any idea of what the certifying authority would be looking for? What would it take to convince them that the line is free of residual forbidden grain?

It’s a complex ecosystem with a lot of attention, inspections, rules, and thought behind it.

There are various certifying authorities but the Orthodox Union (OU) is the predominant one.
https://oukosher.org/passover/articles/what-is-new-for-passover/

(There are competing certifying groups such as Star-K).

The complex story of how Coca-Cola became Kosher to begin with, including a Rabbi who had to be sworn to secrecy due to Coke’s top-secret ingredient list, and how the company made some formula changes.
https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/kosher-coca-cola/

For clarity, basic Kosher (such as an OU symbol) does not qualify for the Passover rules (that would be designated by the OU-P symbol),

telcodad

Soon there may be no need to look for bottles of Coca-Cola with a yellow cap to get Coke made with real cane sugar (or buy Coke made in Mexico):

Trump says Coca-Cola agrees to use cane sugar in US sodas
By Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY - July 16, 2025
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/food/2025/07/16/coca-cola-cane-sugar-trump/85249239007/

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday afternoon, July 16 that Coca-Cola has agreed to use real cane sugar for its soda beverages sold in the U.S.

“I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. ….