New Product Trends: Growing kosher

Kosher products are more mainstream than ever. And the $24 billion kosher food market is projected to grow by 11.5% by 2025, according to Jacksonville, Fla.-based Kosher Network International.

“People see it as a quality certification,” said Deborah Shapiro, VP of marketing and operations at the consumer insight and content creation firm. Customers are looking for “product that happens to be kosher, not just a kosher product.” Therefore, customers don’t necessarily want to go to the kosher section to find them. Increasingly, retailers are integrating kosher products into the rest of the store just as they did with organic products a few years ago, she said.

To call attention to the kosher certification, Shapiro suggests retailers use shelf labels. And retails should seek out products that incorporate Mediterranean ingredients, particularly those from Israel, as well as kosher products that adhere to specialty diets like vegan and gluten-free, she said. But on the whole, consumers are looking for the same convenience, affordability and quality they expect to find all over the supermarket.

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