Coca‑Cola’s Yellow‑Cap Bottles Return for Pesach
Every spring, shoppers across the U.S. may notice Coca‑Cola bottles sporting bright yellow caps instead of the familiar red, and this year they’re drawing renewed attention online as people ask what the change signifies and why some compare them to Mexican Coke.
The yellow caps mark a seasonal, kosher for Pesach version of Coca‑Cola sweetened with cane sugar rather than high‑fructose corn syrup. In observant Jewish communities, many avoid corn and grain products during Pesach, so Coca‑Cola produces a special batch each year that meets kosher standards for the holiday and is labeled with a yellow cap to distinguish it from the standard product.
The tradition dates back decades. In the 1930s, Rabbi Tobias Geffen worked with Coca‑Cola to adjust the beverage’s ingredients so it could be certified kosher. Over time, a yearly switch was made before Pesach to remove corn‑derived ingredients and replace them with cane sugar — and the yellow cap became a visual signal of that Pesach‑approved recipe.
