Manischewitz cancels macaroon cans

Nobody said that being Passover packaging product manager for Manischewitz was going to be easy, or even painless.

As the Jewish cultural historian who blogs under the name Fred MacDowell noted on a social network the other afternoon, “People take their ancestral Pesach minhagim” — customs — “seriously.”

He made this comment above a picture of this year’s shelf of Manischewitz kosher-for-Passover macaroons — which, shockingly, come in bags rather than the traditional cans.

“Eliminating those cans seems like a dangerous game that Manischewitz is playing,” he warned.

And danger is hardly something one expects from a brand with the motto “comfort food for the soul.”

So we reached out to a Manischewitz spokesperson to get the company’s perspective on this radical reform.

“How do you respond to people who say you’re removing a holiday symbol?” we asked.

“A holiday symbol?” came the reply. “People use our cans all year long! We were tired of people using our macaroon cans to hold pens, scissors and sewing notions! So Chaim and Shani scoured the world to find packaging that is great for Passover macaroons and that’s it.”

The spokesperson acknowledged that Manischewitz has been shipping its macaroons in cans since the 1940s. “First in metal tins, then in paperboard canisters,” he said.

What’s next for the kosher goods firm launched in Cincinnati, Ohio, 135 years ago? Should we expect changes in the classic gefilte fish jars?

“Yes!” replied the Manischewitz rep enthusiastically. “We’re experimenting with the bags that goldfish come in.”

And to think that the critics are carping now!