Meghan Markle’s new line of food products with her lifestyle brand As Ever has been slammed by a seasoned jam-maker, who said ‘there is no excuse’ for her fruit spreads
Meghan Markle has been slammed by a champion jam maker who says her As Ever products are a “real disappointment” – despite them selling out. A new range of products was released on Friday, a week after the Duchess of Sussex first teased the new summer collection.
The items sold out within hours of going on sale, with fans across the US all jumping on the opportunity to snag their favourite As Ever products. The new range included an apricot fruit spread, a limited edition orange blossom honey, and coming soon will be a brand new rosé wine, marking her foray into the world of alcoholic drinks.
Some of the products from her first release were also restocked, with fans finally able to get their hands on the flower sprinkles, crepe mix, herbal teas, and shortbread cookie mix.
While thousands of people were able to snag their jars of the newly released apricot spread, not everyone was impressed with the products – including champion jam-maker Donna Collins.
Collins, who owns Jelly Queens jam company and has secured more than 40 world championship honours in jam-making competitions, claimed that labelling the product as a “spread” rather than jam indicates a fundamental flaw in the production process.
“It’s a real disappointment that Meghan is selling a fruit spread, which is what you make when your jam fails,” Collins stated. “In the jam industry, a spread is what we call something that didn’t work.”
The jam expert explained that although a product might contain premium ingredients, consistency issues would lead to relabelling. According to the Daily Mail , she said: “It can have the best ingredients, but if I had a jam that was too runny, I’d slap a label on it and call it a spread.”
She expressed particular concern about the inclusion of pectin, a gelling agent, saying that such an inclusion shouldn’t be necessary, saying: “And why is she using pectin, which is a gelling agent, unless it’s because her spread was too runny? Most spreads don’t use pectin.”
Collins was unequivocal in her assessment of the new As Ever products, declaring: “There’s no excuse for this. It should be perfect. I don’t know who’s making her spread, but we all know it’s not Meghan. It sounds like they really don’t know what they are doing.”
Howevever thers have expressed their delight over getting their hands on the newest items, with Maureen Foley, owner of Red Hen Cannery near Montecito, suggesting that the As Ever products are exactly as intended.
“She may be smart trying to fill a niche,” Foley said. “Spreads can be sweet or savoury, and used on dishes for all meals, so perhaps it’s just clever marketing.”
The second release of As Ever products caused a stir online, with many calling out the hefty prices and limited availability. The orange blossom honey is available with a hefty price tag of $28, or £21, while the apricot spread in her signature keepsake packaging will set you back $14, or £10. International fans have also been let down by the release, as the products are only available for shipping within the United States.
Despite the price tags, the As Ever drop sold out in under an hour of its release, with many dedicated fans already pleading for a restock.