Business Notes INVESTIGATIONS

With the approach of Passover, supermarkets are carrying abundant supplies of matzo, the unleavened bread consumed during the Seder ceremony as a reminder of the Jews' tribulations under Pharaoh and their flight from Egypt. But last week a federal grand jury declared that the holiday price of matzo has not been kosher.

In an indictment handed down in Newark, the Government charged that the B. Manischewitz Co., the largest U.S. matzo baker, conspired with other firms to fix the price of products worth $25 million from 1981 to 1986. Jersey City- based Manischewitz is accused of exploiting the increased demand for matzo during the eight-day holiday by arranging "agreed-upon increases" for a variety of matzo items. Manischewitz denies the charges, saying its prices were "independently and fairly determined."