TOOTSIE ROLLS TO GO KOSHER!!!

From Kosher Today (Oct. 13, 2009)

KosherToday Exclusive: Tootsie Roll, Gatorade Will Soon Have Major Kosher Certification, Sources Say

New York…Although there is yet to be a formal announcement, sources told KosherToday that Tootsie Roll and Gatorade will be the next icon food brands to acquire a major kosher symbol. For kosher consumers, such news has become less frequent than in the 90’s and early 2000’s when many major brands made the move. They included Nabisco’s Oreos, Keebler, Entenmann’s and other national brands that kosher consumers had considered “forbidden fruits.” More recent members of the club include Topp’s Bazooka and Jelly Belly. Tootsie Roll, a Chicago-based company, has grown to become one of the country’s largest candy companies, with operations throughout North America and with distribution channels in more than 75 countries. Gatorade is a brand of flavored non-carbonated sports drinks manufactured by the Quaker Oats Company, now a division of PepsiCo. Pepsi’s competitor PowerAde, owned by the Coca-Cola Co., has OU certification. Kosher sources explain that news of a major brand going kosher is rare these days “since most of them already have a major kosher symbol.” One certification agency told Kosher Today: “We are rapidly approaching the day when every major US food brand that can be kosher certified will be kosher.”