Tip-top conditions for Pesach jam production

THE SMALL North Essex town of Tiptree is virtually synonymous with the Wilkin & Sons jam factory. The Wilkin family began farming at Tiptree in 1757, and have been making quality preserves since 1885. The company first received a Royal Warrant from King George V in 1911 and this honour has continued, with the company currently holding the Royal Warrant as purveyor of Tiptree products to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II.

Many of the fruits used to make Tiptree products are still farmed locally and there is a strong emphasis on maintaining the quality for which the company has always been known. Fruit is inspected and prepared by hand and cooked in small batches, in traditional, copper-bottomed pans. The original fruit-sieving machine for jellies (clear jams) is still in use after more than 120 years. Products are made in a nutfree factory to cherished recipes; they remain free from artificial colours, flavours and preservatives.

Fruit crops include strawberries, raspberries, mulberries, Morello cherries, rhubarb, damsons, Victoria plums, greengages, quinces and the curious medlar. Where items cannot be grown locally, fruit is purchased from trusted sources, such as Seville for the marmalade oranges. Tiptree’s signature fruit is the Little Scarlet strawberry, a tiny wild variety that is difficult to grow and harvest, but worth it for the depth of flavour it provides. Tiptree is probably the only place in the world where this fruit is grown.

There is a great focus on the relationship between the company and the surrounding environment. Every member of staff is part of an employee benefit trust, giving them a keen interest in the future of the business. The Tiptree farm is Leaf marque accredited (Linking Environment and Farming), in recognition of its care for the environment and involvement in the local community. KLBD rabbi checks clean pans before kashering. Below left: 1983 JC advert

The Kashrut Division of the London Beth Din (KLBD) is proud to have a longstanding relationship with Wilkin & Sons. The company’s interest in kosher certification was initially only for Passover jams but, over the past couple of decades, demand for kosher-certified products has increased dramatically and now Tiptree jams and marmalades are kosher-certified all year round.

Tiptree is sold in more than 60 countries and, as well as being kosher-certified in the UK, is attracting interest from abroad, particularly America and Israel.

The product range has expanded too. Besides standard flavours, you can now buy more unusual ones, such as green fig, loganberry and pineapple (three separate varieties!). A wide selection of honeys, curds and sweet spreads has become kosher-certified in recent years and the range keeps growing. These developments are, in no small measure, due to the co-operation and professionalism of the Tiptree staff.

The KLBD insists on the highest standards of kashrut, in order to grant certification. Each ingredient and processing aid is checked. When necessary, the equipment is koshered thoroughly to meet KLBD standards. This can be daunting to staff who are unfamiliar with the practice, but the emphasis on quality control at the company and the goodwill between Tiptree and the KLBD keeps things running smoothly.

The production of kosher for Passover jams by Wilkin & Sons had lapsed in recent years, but due to increasing demand from customers, 2019 is now the second year in which a special batch production has been arranged. In preparation, a number of ingredients and processing aids have been obtained

from alternative sources. Pectin, a water-soluble fibre, occurs naturally in most fruits, with the highest concentration in the peel or skin; its presence causes the setting of jellies and preserves and gives jams their spreadable consistency. When producing jams from fruits which do not have a high pectin content, extra pectin in powdered form is added. It is important to ensure the pectin powder used is suitable for Passover, as manufacturers often purify and concentrate their product using ethanol, which can be wheat-derived. In addition, because pectin is naturally derived from fruit, the gelling strength of pectin can be unpredictable, so they usually add ingredients such as dextrose (potentially from wheat) to give a consistent strength. Acidity regulators — citric acid and sodium citrate — may also be grain-derived. Finally, since some of the Tiptree products manufactured throughout the year contain chametz, for example, marmalade with malt whisky, a full koshering of the factory is essential before Passover production can begin.

To oversee the 2019 (5779) production, two KLBD rabbis travelled to the factory for a 6am start, to supervise the koshering of the production line from beginning to end and to verify that the Passover-approved pectin was the one mixed into the tank, together with the specially purchased processing aids. The rabbis remained on-site until all the jars were sealed and labelled as KLBD — kosher for Passover.

Two rabbis travelled to the factory for a 6am start’