{"id":227793,"date":"2025-06-30T23:13:10","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T23:13:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/227793\/"},"modified":"2025-06-30T23:13:10","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T23:13:10","slug":"meghan-markle-is-in-a-jam-jam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/227793\/","title":{"rendered":"Meghan Markle Is In a Jam Jam"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Tuesday, Meghan Markle<\/strong> will release a ros\u00e9 wine, one of the most hotly anticipated products from her Netflix-backed company As Ever. As the website ramps up for another launch<\/a>, jars of her apricot spread have been making their way to customers around the United States\u2014and kicking up a bit of controversy in the British tabloids.<\/p>\n

Though Meghan\u2019s business was inspired by the jams and spreads she made in her own home, and she said they were made in US, the Mail on Sunday<\/a> revealed that they are currently being produced in a factory about 2000 miles from her Montecito home in Illinois. This week, sources close to the duchess told the British paper that As Ever\u2019s spreads and teas are being manufactured by Republic of Tea\u2014an Illinois-based company known for its round pouches and eclectic blends\u2014using California-grown berries from an unidentified supplier. In addition, the Mail reported that the ros\u00e9 is being made in collaboration with Fairwinds Estate, a Napa Valley winery. (Vanity Fair has contacted the Duchess\u2019s representatives for comment.)<\/p>\n

In an April interview with Fortune<\/a>, Meghan noted that her products were all manufactured in the United States, but otherwise, details about the product\u2019s sourcing and production were difficult to come by. According to The Mirror<\/a>, she is currently in the process of looking for new suppliers for the brand.<\/p>\n

Though As Ever\u2019s tea bags are triangular, it isn\u2019t a huge surprise that Republic of Tea was involved with the product development for the brand that Meghan started with support from Netflix\u2019s Consumer Product Group. The CPG has a history of partnering with other brands and manufacturers to bring their products to market, and in 2022, Republic of Tea released an assortment of teas and accessories<\/a> promoting the streamer\u2019s show Bridgerton.<\/p>\n

Meghan first began to build buzz for a lifestyle brand in early 2024 when she sent jars of homemade strawberry jam to 50 friends and acquaintances. A handful of the recipients, including Mindy Kaling, Kris Jenner,<\/strong> and Chrissy Teigen,<\/strong> shared photos of the jam<\/a> to their Instagram accounts. At first, she decided to name her company \u201cAmerican Rivera Orchard,\u201d but later decided to change track when she realized that a geographically specific name would limit her to make products in the area. In a May podcast interview<\/a> with Tina Knowles,<\/strong> she mentioned<\/a> that her original ambition for her business was to open a Santa Barbara farmer\u2019s market stand where she would sell small-batch preserves, adding that she had even applied for a license.<\/p>\n

When the brand made its mass-market debut in April 2025, she had chosen a new name and opted to release a raspberry fruit spread. In a conversation<\/a> with It Cosmetics founder Jamie Kern Lima,<\/strong> she noted that she hoped to expand the range of flavors. \u201cOf course, more jam drops,\u201d Meghan said. \u201cThink of them like sneaker drops.\u201d Earlier this month, when As Ever did a restock of its products, the apricot spread became the company\u2019s newest jam flavor.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, an American jam maker told the Daily Mail<\/a> that she found Meghan\u2019s decision to market \u201cfruit spreads\u201d to be suspect. \u201cIt’s a real disappointment that Meghan is selling a fruit spread, which is what you make when your jam fails,” said Donna Collins,<\/strong> the owner of Jelly Queens, a business based in Fairview, Texas. \u201cIt 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

The difference between a \u201cjam,\u201d a \u201cpreserve,\u201d and a \u201cspread\u201d comes down to the ratio of fruit to sugar. Jam, which is regulated by the FDA<\/a>, must have at least 55% sugar and 45% fruit. The sugar content also affects the jam\u2019s final consistency. As the sugar is heated, it binds to fruit pectins, either naturally occurring or added, to create a stronger gel.<\/p>\n

In an episode of her show, With Love, Meghan, the duchess explained that she intentionally made a product with less sugar. \u201cTechnically, it can\u2019t be called jam because jam is equal parts sugar and fruit,\u201d Meghan said<\/a>. \u201cI just don\u2019t think you can taste the fruit that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

On their website, As Ever describes their new apricot spread as having \u201ca touch of sweetness, letting the apricot\u2019s bright flavor shine.\u201d Vanity Fair obtained a jar of the brand\u2019s newest release, and though the spread\u2019s texture was distractingly runny, the fruit\u2019s acidic flavor was a hit.<\/p>\n

The duchess is aware enough that her preserves are fairly runny, to the point that she joked about it during her appearance on Aspire With Emma Grede<\/a> earlier this month. After discussing the stress of launching a TV show, a podcast, and a lifestyle company at the same time, she said she was looking forward to taking a break from her busy schedule. With a smile, she added<\/a>, \u201cAt a certain point, the only thing I want to spread thin is my jam.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"On Tuesday, Meghan Markle will release a ros\u00e9 wine, one of the most hotly anticipated products from her…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":227794,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7708],"tags":[7709,7721,7719,7718,7720,1281,447,7710,519,448,7711],"class_list":{"0":"post-227793","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-royals","8":"tag-british-royal-family","9":"tag-duchess-of-sussex","10":"tag-duke-of-sussex","11":"tag-harry","12":"tag-meghan","13":"tag-meghan-markle","14":"tag-prince-harry","15":"tag-royal-families","16":"tag-royal-family","17":"tag-royals","18":"tag-uk-royal-family"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114774855124482878","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227793","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=227793"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/227793\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/227794"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=227793"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=227793"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=227793"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}