Is Neocate Kosher?

Q: Our family keeps kosher, and we just found out that my child needs Neocate and Duocal. I know some formulas aren’t kosher. Can you tell me if your products are, and which kosher certifications they have?

A: Sure! Most Neocate products and Duocal have been certified kosher pareve. (“Pareve” means there is nothing derived from milk or meat used in the product or on the manufacturing equipment.) Read more about Neocate Infant Kosher status.

North American customers can contact our Neocate Nutrition Services team to request a copy of the certificates. Families in the UK can search the KLBD UK online database to see Nutricia products listed in their database.

Nutricia only has official kosher certification for some Neocate products at this time.

The Kashrut Division of the London Beth Din (KLBD), an independent, leading authority on kosher food and Jewish Law, is the certifying body for these products. (Other Neocate products have been informally noted in the past as kosher-appropriate by an agency, but that is not the same as kosher certification.)

Here’s a list of products and their kosher status:

As we hear from customers, we’ll consider having other Nutricia products certified kosher.

Some customers ask specific questions about taurine, an ingredient in Neocate products. Many commercial products use natural taurine, derived from pork, which is NOT kosher. We use synthetic taurine, which is kosher-appropriate.

None of our products are certified kosher for passover. The best thing to do would be to contact your Rabbi to discuss with them what foods or ingredients qualify as chametz or kitniyot. It may help to know that neither Duocal nor any of the Neocate products use ingredients derived from wheat. All Neocate products and Duocal use carbohydrates derived from corn. Share this information with the Rabbi to clarify any doubts about your questions.

General Kosher Information and Food Allergies

You can look for the kosher symbol on a product, which is usually some variation on the letter U or K. This indicates that the food has been inspected by a kosher-certifying body. If it has a “D” or the word “dairy” next to it, this means that it either contains dairy or was made on shared equipment with dairy. If the kosher symbol has an “m” or the word “meat” next to it, this product contains meat or was made on shared equipment with meat. Finally, if it has “pareve” written next to it, it contains neither milk nor meat, and was made on dedicated equipment that is not used with dairy or meat. (Fish is commonly classified as “neutral” or “pareve” so keep this in mind if your little one has fish/shellfish allergies.)

Don’t forget that kosher labels may not always take cross-contamination into account so it’s possible that there are traces of milk protein in a product even though it is not labeled as “dairy.” So if something has a kosher symbol listing “meat” or “pareve,” you should still read the ingredients closely or call the manufacturer and not assume it is 100% dairy-free. All Neocate products are tested to ensure they are free of dairy protein, and the Neocate products that have been certified are Kosher Pareve.

For even more information about food allergies and keeping kosher visit our friend Tamar’s blog Kosher With Food Allergies.

Last updated November 2023