FRUIT SPREADS - CLOSEST TO HOMEMADE®

Information updated August 2024

Homemade Jellies + Jams are made with Fruit Juice (jelly) or crushed Fruit (jam) plus possibly Sugar + Pectin + possibly Lemon as a natural preservative. Pectin is a natural thickening agent made from fruit. 

The #1 and #2 brands of fruit-based spreads in the U.S. are Smucker’s and Welch’s. (Source: Statista 2024)

#1 BRAND: SMUCKER’S

Seen below, Smucker’s Concord Grape Jelly has two added corn-based sweeteners: 

1. High Fructose Corn Syrup

2. Corn Syrup

Ingredients are always listed in descending order of amount, so there is more High Fructose Corn Syrup than Corn Syrup in Smucker's Concord Grape Jelly. There is no real Sugar.

Source for Smucker’s ingredients: The J.M. Smucker Company Smucker’s Web site 8/24

The High Fructose Corn Syrup in Smucker’s is banned by Whole Foods Market who cites it as "Unacceptable in food." (Source: Amazon Whole Foods Web site 8/24)

COST COMPARISON: At Walmart 8/24, Smucker’s Concord Grape Jelly 18oz. contains the same basic six ingredients as Walmart’s Great Value brand Concord Grape Jelly 18oz., but in slightly different amounts.

Smucker’s costs 86¢ more out-of-pocket (5¢ more per ounce) than Great Value.

#2 BRAND: WELCH’S

Welch’s Concord Grape Jelly has the same two added corn-based sweeteners as Smucker’s: 

1. High Fructose Corn Syrup

2. Corn Syrup

WELCH'S AND SMUCKER'S CONCORD GRAPE JELLY BOTH HAVE THE SAME FOUR INGREDIENTS WHICH ARE NOT IN KITCHEN™: Not In Kitchen ingredients are those items which would not be in our kitchens if we were making jelly at home. The four ingredients Not In Kitchen are Corn Syrup, High Fructose Corn Syrup, and the chemical preservatives, Citric Acid and Sodium Citrate.

Corn Syrup and High Fructose Corn Syrup are cheaper than Sugar. According to the U.S. FDA 2024, GMO corn is 92% of total U.S. corn acreage.

LEADING JELLY BRANDS SWITCHED FROM SOLELY SUGAR TO ADDING CORN SYRUPS: Back in the early days of commercial development, Smucker’s and Welch’s did indeed use only sugar as a sweetener.  But when these category leaders began adding cheaper corn-based ingredients, a “product gap” was created, to be filled by new products which were closer to the originals. 

CREATING A PRODUCT OPPORTUNITY: When Smucker's and Welch's began adding Corn Syrup sweeteners, they realized there was a smaller contingent of people who are highly concerned with what they're eating (like you who are reading this) and are willing to pay more for a Closer To Homemade product.  

FRUIT SPREADS ARE BORN: At this point, the term “Fruit Spread” emerged (beyond jelly + jam) to redefine a Closer To Homemade product profile with 100% fruit, plus possibly added sweeteners like Fruit Juice or real Sugar. Hence, the products you will see on the CTH charts below are all Fruit Spreads with Fruit Juice, real Sugar or no added sweeteners.

Some Fruit Preserves and Jellies contain Corn Syrup and High Fructose Corn Syrup:

CHEMICAL PRESERVATIVES: Many Fruit Spreads + Preserves contain FDA-recognized Chemical Preservative(s). (Sources: Brand Web sites 8/24; U.S. FDA 2024)

CLOSEST TO HOMEMADE: The Closest To Homemade brands noted below contain no added Corn Syrups, Colors, Flavors, Chemical Preservatives or Artificial Sweeteners.

SUGAR SWEETENED: These include Bonne Maman made with Sugar; Beth’s Farm Kitchen with Cane Sugar; Field Day Organic made with Organic Vegan Fair Trade Cane Sugar; Non-GMO Project verified Hero with Sugar + Cane Sugar, and Blackberry Patch made with Cane Sugar >> they make small batch jams + preserves in many varieties. (Sources: Brand Web sites 8/24)

NO ADDED SUGAR FRUIT SWEETENED CLOSEST TO HOMEMADE: These include St. Dalfour which is sweetened with only Grape + Date juice concentrates; Non-GMO Project verified Blake Hill Naked sweetened with only Pineapple Juice, and Fior di frutta Organic which is sweetened with only Organic Apple Juice concentrate.

CLOSEST TO HOMEMADE CONSERVES: Bonnie’s Jams Conserves are all Closest To Homemade:

NO ADDED SUGAR FRUIT SPREADS: Here is a trio of Closest To Homemade Fruit Spreads with no added Sugar >> Beth’s Farm Kitchen Strawberry Spread with Strawberries, Apples + Lemon Juice; Josephine’s Feast Apricot & Vanilla Spread sweetened with White Grape Juice, and Eden Foods Grape Butter made with only Organic Concord Grapes.

WELCH’S AND SMUCKER’S: Seen below left, Welch’s Natural Concord Grape and Smucker’s Simply Fruit Concord Grape are both Closest To Homemade. Lemon Juice Concentrate is added to these products as a Natural Preservative.

Meanwhile, below right, the Strawberry versions — Welch’s Natural and Smucker’s Simply Fruit — are not Closest To Homemade because they contain commercial Natural Flavor.

Discover more food + beverages whose ingredients are Closest To Homemade in 275+ categories:

LOW SUGAR PRODUCTS: Low sugar products tend to have more ingredients Not In Kitchen to compensate for the lower sugar content while still meeting consumers' taste requirements.

Smucker's Low Sugar Concord Grape Jelly contains less Sugar. One of the ways manufacturers reduce Sugar content is to add Water as we see here (Smucker’s regular Concord Grape Jelly contains no added Water). This Far From Homemade product also contains an FDA-recognized Chemical Preservative — Citric Acid — plus an added Thickening Agent and a Firming Agent. (Sources: U.S. FDA 2024, The J.M Smucker Company Smucker's Web site 8/24)

Shown below, WELCH’S JELLY COMPARISON: REDUCED SUGAR vs. REGULAR: Reduced Sugar versions may be selected in an attempt to make a healthier choice. However, Welch's Reduced Sugar Concord Grape Jelly has more chemical ingredients than the regular Welch's Concord Grape Jelly. Welch's Reduced Sugar Concord Grape Jelly has added Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate and Calcium Chloride. (Sources: U.S. FDA 2024, Welch's Web site 8/24)

In the world of Fruit Spreads:

AVOID: Corn sweeteners, low sugar/reduced sugar products (they tend to have more ingredients Not In Kitchen™ than the base brands), artificial sweeteners, gums, chemical preservatives, non-organic GMO sugar, thickening agents, firming agents, water, plastic containers.

SEEK: Organic fruit, fruit pectin, 100% fruit, non-GMO organic sugar or cane sugar or organic fruit juice/syrup/purée or organic honey (if there is a sweetener), glass containers.

To learn more about concerns surrounding the propagation and consumption of High Fructose Corn Syrup, please consider watching the Ingredient Inspector video on YouTube: 

Once upon a time, Welch’s Grapelade was just grapes and sugar and the brand was positioned around Purity . . .

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