Kosher Gatorade: a new way for Jews to quench their thirst

Hundreds of bottles with OU symbol distributed at Yeshiva League hockey championship

By Michael Orbach

The beverage of choice at this year's Yeshiva League Hockey championship was none other than the popular sports drink, Gatorade. The company that usually sponsors big name athletes, teams and sporting events is making a push into the kosher market with certification from the Orthodox Union. Several hundred bottles were given out to students and players at the championship. The company is expected to distribute more at the Yeshiva League basketball championship this Sunday. The bottles had the OU symbol.

"Gatorade wanted to have a coming out party to publicize it to the kosher audience," said Yeruchum Brazil, director of student activities at  Rambam Mesivta. "I liked it."

The Orthodox Union and the Gatorade company, owned by Pepsi, have been "working on it for a while," according to a Kashruth industry source who asked to not be named. "There was nothing specific[ly] not kosher about it, it just never had the certification," he said.

Neither the OU nor Gatorade would discuss Gatorade's new status.

Despite the fact that bottles of the sports drink bearing an OU were distributed at the hockey game, a spokesperson for the Orthodox Union said, "There is a rumor that the OU has neither confirmed nor denied that Gatorade will be OU kosher."

An official announcement is forthcoming, a spokesperson for Gatorade explained.

"We are still working with our rabbinical partners and the manufacturing facilities to convert our processes in order to produce kosher Gatorade thirst quencher and G2 products," the spokesperson said.

Rabbi Zev Meir Friedman, Rosh HaMesivta of Rambam Mesivta, was sanguine about the development.

"A thing is kosher because it's kosher, not because a  rabbi makes it kosher," Rabbi Friedman said. "A valid hashgacha is a very convenient way and helpful way of saving the time and effort that goes in to checking the ingredients and machines a product is made with, and all other details that can affect the kashruth of an item. "