Aug 5, 2019

Kayco merges with kosher food giant Manischewitz

Dan Primack

Close-up of a box of Kosher for Passover Matzos bread from Manischewitz — Box of kosher for Passover matzo from Manischewitz. Photo: Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images

Kayco of Brooklyn agreed to buy rival U.S. kosher food company Manischewitz for an undisclosed amount.

Why it matters: Deal-makers often refer to their transactions as being kosher, but this time it's literal. Also, this gives Kayco the country's top maker of matzo (albeit not of kosher wine, as Manischewitz sold its iconic syrup sauce to Constellation Brands more than 20 years ago).

The bottom line: "Since by some estimates the two companies make up more than 50% of the kosher market, the announcement was seen in the kosher world as the equivalent of General Motors acquiring Ford. In theory, it could raise questions about whether Kayco was becoming a monopoly and what that might mean for kosher food prices, already considerably higher than those of nonkosher equivalents." ⁠— Joseph Berger, NY Times

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Kayco merges with kosher food giant Manischewitz

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