Even though they may taste similar, jams and jellies are slightly different. Jam is made from sugar and whole or cut fruits while jelly is made with sugar and fruit juice. Jams and jellies are fruit preserves, which were made in Rome and Middle Eastern countries. In fact, the first known cookbook has a recipe for jam, according to the International Jelly and Preserve Association. The long histories of jams and jellies has resulted in many successful established companies that continue to produce the fruit preserves around the world.
Smucker's
One of the largest American jelly brands is Smucker's. The business was started by Jerome Smucker in 1897 in Ohio and has grown into a large corporation, with stock traded on The New York Stock Exchange. The first product the company produced was apple butter and expanded into jams and jelllies during the 1920's, according to the company web site. The company makes blueberry, grape, apricot and strawberry jams and jellies. All of Smucker's products are Kosher.
Polander
Max Polander and his wife started selling jams and jellies out of their vegetable store in Newark, New Jersey in the 1900's, according to the company web site. Today, the company produces jams, jellies and marmalades; its jellies are produced in grape, mint and currant; jams are available in apricot, strawberry and raspberry. Polander also makes sugar free products, which contain only 10 calories per serving, according to its web site. Polander states that all of the flavor in its products are derived from natural fruit.
Hero
Hero is a Swiss company that makes jams or fruit spreads. The company started in a Swiss village of Lenzburg in 1886, according to its web site. The company maintains that it sells more jam than any other company in the world. It offers 14 flavors of jams, which include pear, cherry, grape, blueberry, blackberry and orange. All of its products are Kosher.
Sarabeth's Kitchen
There are several other large and smaller brands of jams and jellies around the world, including Welch's, American Spoon Food's and Bar Harbor Jam Company. However, there are some brands of jelly and jam that stand out as award-winning. Sarabeth's Kitchen has won awards for its “Legendary Spreadable Fruit,” according to its web site. The company started in Sarabeth and Bill's Manhattan apartment in 1981. More than three decades later, the company has a reputation for producing one of the finest jams in the world. Products are shipped internationally and flavors of the jams include raspberry key lime, pineapple mango, peach apricot, strawberry peach, plum cherry and chunky apple.