Community Magazine September 2009

40 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE customers (although in rare instances, this has been the case), as that many storeowners are less knowledgeable than they think they are. Shoppers who trust the store’s kashrut must trust not only the store- keeper’s integrity, but also his proficiency in all aspects of kashrut. Moreover, even if the owner has the requisite knowledge, he may be preoccupied with the other aspects of running the business and make careless mistakes. Storekeepers might also stock their shelves with products that have less reliable certifications which are below the standards of most customers to satisfy a small number of their less discerning clientele. Who Said It’s Kosher? One of Rabbi Bussu’s biggest concerns is the widespread practice of buying seemingly innocent commodities like spices and nuts, or olives and pickles from open barrels in grocery stores and super- markets. Open or repackaged food can present two hazards: patrons often have no way to know if the goods had a reliable kosher supervision in the first place and even if it did, the food may since have been handled or contaminated in a way that would render it unfit for kosher consumers. In one instance, investigations determined that pickled items sold by a certain propri- etor had absolutely no kosher supervision at any point, and were in fact purchased from Arab manufacturers leaving us with no way of knowing whether un-kosher ingredients or utensils were used in the preparation process. In other cases, the pickled items were from Israel but labeled with supervision that by most Orthodox standards is considered unreliable, leav- ing us in doubt as to whether the issues of terumot and maaserot were properly addressed. Another recent episode happened at a local store with a reliable owner, Rabbi Bussu described how a customer ordered halav Yisrael yogurt, but received an unfamiliar brand. The customer perused the container, and couldn’t locate any kosher symbol. He immediately called the store, and the owner explained that his distributor had researched that product and determined that it was kosher… ten years earlier. Further investigation revealed that the distributor had left the company five years ago and no one had since performed any verifica- tion on this unsupervised product since. Up until very recently dried eggplants used for mechshi (vari- ous stuffed dishes) were sold in many local “kosher” food stores without any hechsher (kosher supervision) whatsoever. Rabbi Bussu discovered that these vegetables were, in many cases, purchased from Chinese or Arab distributers and dried out in un-kosher ovens. Products which arrive from Israel bearing a kosher symbol present an especially difficult challenge. The problem, Rabbi Bussu explains is that levels of kashrut vary widely in Israel. The most basic level relies on numerous and sometimes extreme halachic leniencies, most of which would not pass muster with any of the major American kosher supervisory agencies. A number of rabbis who supervise such products have privately admitted to Rabbi Bussu that they would not eat these products themselves. So what’s the rationale behind offering this level of so-called kashrut? The simple answer is that the Israeli Rabbinate has determined that some minimum level of kashrut is better than none, for the millions of unaffiliated Jews in Israel who would otherwise be buying totally unsupervised foods and the food manufacturers who refuse to pay the necessary expenses for proper supervision. The influx of Israeli products, Rabbi Bussu points out is especially heavy on Passover when, in an effort to please their customers, stor- eowners pack their shelves with hundreds of products with official looking – yet unrecognized kosher certifications. Many of these foods are made from various grains, making it very difficult to ensure they are free from hamess . Therefore on Passover – even more so than throughout the year – consuming foods without reliable supervision can result in a serious transgression. Who’s Supervising What? Ironically, the involvement of kashrut agencies in grocery stores and supermarkets can further complicated matters. Some stores advertise reliable supervision, but patrons may not realize that the certification applies only to one department, such as the butcher or deli. As a result, customers have been (perhaps unintentionally) lulled into believing that the supervising agency certifies everything in the store as kosher. And, even when a store is verified to be entirely under the supervision of a kosher agency, kashrut is not guaranteed. Imagine you walk into a local grocery, and, smelling the aroma of fresh barbequed chicken, ask if it is certified kosher. The worker points to the official looking certificate on the wall, and you glance at it briefly before ordering. Then, as you wait, you happen to glance at the sign once more, and there, printed on the bottom, is the name Rabbi Marsha Cohen. Recognizing that the certification was either Conservative or Reform, you would cancel the order and maybe even complain to the manager. But what if it said Rabbi Moshe Cohen instead? Even without a telltale sign, the agency could still be Conservative or otherwise unacceptable – yet some people nevertheless admit to concluding their inquiry and deciding favorably about an unfamiliar agency based on a casual perusal of a computer printout on the wall. Unfortunately, this problem is by no means hypothetical. A number of local certifications have been deemed unacceptable by many com- munity rabbis after investigations revealed egregiously lax standards. Some of these agencies have been found to have hired mashgihim whose only qualifications are a beard and basic knowledge of the Hebrew language. Interviews with these men and boys reveal that many know less than the average Jewish housewife about keeping kosher. In other cases, agencies which are otherwise known to be reli- able, may take on too many supervising jobs, and, stretched too thin, become unable to supervise the way they should, or often enough. The solution to all of these challenges lies in the hands of the consumers. Those who wish to be maintain some level of kashrut in the home need to be their own supervisors, exercising due diligence, asking questions and checking the kashrut of every item purchased. Fortunately, much of the legwork has already been done and most people can simply consult their rabbi to determine which local kashrut agencies, stores, brands, products, etc., are truly reliable. This effort would not only yield a more kosher kitchen at home, but by abandoning agencies that are deemed unreliable, we will be in effect letting supervisors and store owners know that we demand better.