OUkosher.org

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

The Following Are the Orthodox Union Requirements for Placement of the OU Certification Mark:

• The OU symbol may only be placed on products that have been authorized and certified as listed on your Schedule B (list of certified products). The OU D must be used on products certified as dairy.

• Private Label Product (a brand not owned by the manufacturer and “distributed by” a company other than the manufacturer) may not bear the OU unless a Private Label Agreement (a three-way licensing agreement, signed by the manufacturer, the distributor and the OU) is signed.

• The OU symbol cannot be rubber stamped or in the form of a sticker separate from the original packaging or product label. If you have existing packaging that does not have the OU and these products are now certified, arrangements can be made to address this situation.

• The Orthodox Union does not dictate requirements as to size or where the OU symbol is placed. However, we recommend that it be placed conspicuously, so that it can be seen on a store shelf by a purchaser or a recipient. On most retail labels, the OU symbol appears to the immediate right of the product name.

• Products which are certified as dairy must have the “D” or the word “Dairy” in equal size font to the OU symbol. The “D” should not be a subscript.

• OU certified products may not contain another food item that is not OU certified. For example, the OU symbol may not be printed on a cereal box that contains a non-OU certified candy, although this cereal generally bears the OU symbol.

• When bundling items of different status together (e.g. kosher and non-kosher or dairy and pareve), the OU symbol may not be used on the composite bag or tray. The certification should only appear on the individual items. For example, a tray containing dairy and pareve potato chips may not have an OU on the tray, as consumers might think that all the items contained are pareve. Alternatively, the tray may be marked as OU/OU-D. A multi-pack of granola bars containing kosher and non-kosher varieties may not have an OU on the outer box, but rather the OU should only appear on the certified items.

• It is not recommended to print the OU symbol on blank boxes, cartons or bags since not all products produced in a plant may be certified. Private label customers may be ineligible or choose not to sign the OU Private Label Agreement; as a result the OU symbol may not be used on their packaging.

For further clarification contact:
Howard Katzenstein
Business Manager, OU Kosher

212 613 8169

It’s More Than Curds and Whey: OU Kosher’s Dairy Expert Tells How to Kosherize a Cheese Company

Some time ago, I received the following letter:

As you know, I manage a cheese company, which manufactures kosher and non-kosher cheese, plus kosher whey powder. You are familiar with our equipment and how it needs to be kosherized, but my staff needs some education on this. Can you please explain the kosherization rules for the equipment so that I can share them with my staff? If you don’t mind, I would also appreciate if you could include a basic review of how the equipment works, so that new employees can also benefit from this.

Cheese Equipment:

Plate Heat Exchanger

Description

When cheese is manufactured, the milk must usually first be pasteurized (heat-treated to destroy harmful bacteria); this is typically done in a plate heat exchanger, in which the milk travels along metal plates with increasing intensities of heat. Once the milk reaches the desired temperature (usually 161° F), it is held for a required duration at that temperature and is then cooled, passing along metal plates with increasing intensities of coldness. For the sake of efficiency, incoming cold milk is heated by outgoing hot milk, before the outgoing hot milk is cooled down; the hot and cold milk pass along different sides of the same plates, such that the outgoing hot milk passes its heat to the incoming cold milk, through the metal of the plates.

This system does not itself heat or cool the milk sufficiently, and plate heat exchangers therefore need heating and cooling sections to fully perform the heating and cooling processes. The heating section of plate heat exchangers consists of extremely hot water on one side of plates; when milk travels over the other side of these plates, it becomes very hot. So too, cooling is accomplished though chilled water which is held on one side of the plates on which pasteurized, hot milk passes, so that this milk is chilled in the process.

Kosherization
The plate heat exchanger is among the most complicated equipment for the purposes of kosherization. Although dairy factories sanitize plate heat exchangers at least once per day, such sanitization (“CIP” – “cleaning in place”) usually does not constitute a kosherization for a variety of reasons – among them the fact the standard CIP is usually performed at 165-185 degrees, which is inadequate for kosherization, as well as the fact that CIP protocol often does not include certain areas of equipment that kosher law requires to be kosherized. Normal CIP also frequently features hot acid and caustic solutions followed by ambient water for cleaning, and some kosher law authorities do not accept kosherization with anything other than water.

To properly kosherize a plate heat exchanger, one must take the following steps:

• Assure that the equipment is totally fallow for 24 hours, or – according to some opinions in kosher regulations – embitter the equipment via an embittering solution, run at close-to-boiling temperatures through all areas which has hot product contact.

• Flow boiling water through the above areas.

This doesn’t sound too complicated; it seems to be kind of like a good sanitizing. However, it is anything but simple. Here is why, followed by what needs to be done to address some unexpected complexities:

• The heat exchanger’s regeneration (or “regen”) areas, where hot product heats cold product and vice versa through metal plates, are often not able to be easily kosherized with boiling water. Typical CIP often cannot reach such temperatures in the regen areas. The OU rabbinic field representative (RFR) and rabbinic coordinator (RC) must work carefully with the plant’s engineers to accomplish this feat.

• Similarly, the heat exchanger’s cooling section is often hard to kosherize. To do so, the cooling mechanism must be off, and the flow of kosherization water may need to be diverted from its normal course in order to reach the cooling section while the water is yet boiling.

• Before production, the heat exchanger’s balance tank, where cool product is metered into the heat exchanger, often has exposure to hot product. This is because part of the start-up of a heat exchanger involves recirculating hot product back to the balance tank until the heating areas of the heat exchanger are hot enough to pasteurize.

Boiling water run through the heat exchanger usually drops below boiling temperatures by the time it arrives back at the balance tank. Thus, boiling water must be specially diverted back to the balance tank by changing its normal course, in order to kosherize the balance tank properly. Again, this needs the involvement of the plant’s engineers in order to be done correctly.

• The water that passes heat to product through metal plates can have absorption of dairy or non-kosher product via seepage or via taste transfer through the metal plates. Thus, the heating water in these plates can be non-kosher or have a dairy status. The solution is to evacuate and dispose of the heating water (which is otherwise not changed and is used over and over again for months) before kosher-dairy or non-dairy (“pareve”) productions and to refill the plates’ heating water area with fresh, unused heating water — or to embitter the old heating water so that it cannot pass taste back to the new product.

An RFR must carefully monitor this all; there is no automated recording of these details in most plants. (It is also critical that the heat exchanger’s plates be periodically opened and cleaned in the presence of an RFR, as these plates can accumulate build-up of product, which may be a serious kosher issue.)

Cheese Vat:

Description

After milk exits the heat exchanger, it enters a vat. This vat is normally made of steel and has jackets on it; these jackets hold hot water and are set to specific temperatures for cheese production. (Every cheese has its own production temperature.) When turned on, the jackets heat the vat in which the cheese is made.

The milk in the cheese vat is dosed with acid cultures (or direct acid, as in the case of a few soft, rennetless cheese varieties), and rennet is added as well. Cream (milk fat) and non-fat dry milk may also be added to regulate fat ratios, and vinegar may be added to regulate pH.

Kosherization

Unlike heat exchangers, cheese vats are usually not too complicated in terms of kosher protocol. The reason is that most cheeses (such as cheddar, mozzarella, Edam, Muenster, and Gouda), when made non-kosher, are not “hot vat” cheeses; these cheeses are coagulated at temperatures which are not high enough according to kosher law to render a vat non-kosher, and their vats thus do not need kosherization prior to kosher cheese production. A good washing, followed by inspection by an RFR, is all that is needed.

Vats used for hot-vat cheeses, such as most Parmesan and Swiss Emmenthaler, require kosherization before use for hot-vat kosher cheeses. In this case, the vats need to be cleaned, left fallow for 24 hours, and then totally rinsed with boiling water, with the jackets providing as much of the heat as possible. (In some cases of great need, embitterment, discussed above, may be done, if 24 hours of down-time is not feasible.)

Rennetless cheeses, referred to as acid-set cheeses (such as cottage cheese, cream cheese and farmer cheese) are normally made at very high temperatures, and their vats or kettles need full kosherization. (The cheeses discussed above, which use rennet to coagulate them, are termed rennet-set cheeses.)

Of critical import: After their removal from the cheese vat and formation, mozzarella and provolone cheeses are cooked in special cheese cookers, where they are stretched and manipulated in order to endow them with an elastic texture. These cheese cookers operate at 165-180° F and need full kosherization before kosher use.

Curd and Whey Separation:

Description

Once the milk turns into curd (cheese) and whey (the part of the milk that did not become cheese, and remains pure liquid), it is evacuated from the vat and separated, usually via a draining and matting conveyor (“ DMC”); the curd flows to one area and the whey drips down to dedicated vessels.

Kosherization

The equipment used for separating curd from whey does not have any heat applied. Thus, the curd and whey temperature at this point is always the same or lower than the curd and whey temperature in the vat, and the same kosherization or mere cleansing requirements of the vat surely pertain here.

Salting and Molding Equipment:

Description

The curd is then left to dry and is subsequently molded into cheese and salted; salting preserves the cheese from becoming quickly rancid. This salting may be performed on special salting tables, or by immersing the curd in brine (a solution of very salty water) for a long time – a day or more in many cases. This brining occurs in a series of brine tanks, in which the cheese is submerged in brine as per the relevant specifications.

Kosherization

According to most kosher certification professionals, modern cheese tables and molding equipment normally require mere cleansing (not kosherization) under the supervision of an RFR, before commencing kosher cheese production. Although cheese molding equipment as discussed by kosher law authorities hundreds of years ago required real kosherization, modern cheese tables and molding equipment normally do not. (Today, there is less salt used, the equipment has no crevices, and the cheese contacts it for shorter durations. Nevertheless, some kosher law authorities do require kosherization of modern salting tables, maintaining that the basic rationale necessitating this still pertains.)

However, brine tanks are another story. Since these tanks often hold cheese upwards of 24 hours and the same brine in them is reused over and over for months for non-kosher cheeses, it is absolutely required that new brine be used for kosher manufacture and that the tanks be lined or kosherized. (Kosherization is often not feasible, as brine tanks can be made from fiberglass, which cannot be kosherized). Cheese companies are hesitant to dispose of old brine, rich with flavor from non-kosher cheese absorption; so too are companies at times not happy to line or kosherize their brine tanks. Nevertheless, there is no other way to use brine and brine tanks for kosher cheese manufacture.

Cutting and Packaging:

Description

The cheese is then cut into desired size, packaged and labeled.

Kosherization

Cheese cutting and packaging equipment is the easiest to deal with from a kosher perspective. This equipment does not use heat, and kosherization is therefore not necessary.

There are two ways to handle cutting blades: Have them scrubbed with abrasive material and then inspected by the RFR for cleanliness and lack of residue; or, save time and use new blades. The truth is that cheese cutting blades are replaced pretty often, and most companies will readily use new blades for kosher production.

Packaging equipment needs to be inspected by the RFR for cleanliness and is then ready for use.

Whey Production and Equipment:

Description

We explained above that whey is drained from cheese after removal from the vat. Some small cheese companies dispose of their whey or sell it to farms to be mixed into animal feed. (Whey contains protein and is a good addition to animal feed.) Other cheese companies dry their whey into powder in spray dryers. This equipment consists of one to three chambers, in which liquid (whey, in this case) enters at the top (or the side, for certain types of dryers) and is ultra-heated by a flame or heating element.

The liquid is quickly atomized, or made into powder, at which point it passes through the dryer as tiny particles, to be collected for bagging at the exit of the chamber – or to enter another chamber or two for further removal of moisture. Although our case deals with whey, spray dryers are used for the manufacture of non-fat milk powder as well as for most food powders.

Kosherization

How does one kosherize a spray dryer? One would think that spray dryers could be kosherized like ovens – turn on the heat full- blast and achieve a scorching effect, if and once the requisite temperature is attained. However, it is not so simple, as spray dryers are open vessels through which air passes, and the spray dryers’ metal walls cannot therefore become hot enough to kosherize via a scorching effect. Yes, the internal air temperature may become very high, but the metal walls never do.

Therefore, spray dryers must be kosherized via hot water purging. After being left fallow for 24 hours and checked for cleanliness, boiling water is run through the nozzles of the spray dryer, so as to kosherize the nozzles. Then, a series of spray balls, which are like ultra-high volume shower heads, must be lowered into the dryer’s chambers; these spray balls shoot boiling water all over the entire internal walls of the dryer. The RFR must verify that there are enough spray balls and that they emit sufficient volumes of water to coat the whole interior of the dryer, so that every single spot is covered by a cascade of hot water.

The RFR then makes sure that the exiting water, at the end of the chamber, is boiling. This is because it is easy to shoot boiiling water through the spray balls, but the water often cools down as it travels through the chamber. Thus, verifying that the water upon exit is indeed boiling enables one to know that the water was boiling when it was in the chamber of the spray dryer as well, at every single spot.

Rabbi Andrew Gordimer is an OU Kosher rabbinic coordinator and group leader at OU headquarters. He specializes in the dairy industry and is responsible for administering the OU Kosher programs of over 80 client companies. He is a frequent contributor on topics of kosher law and other topics to various publications including BTUS. His most recent article, “Greek Yogurt for the Cultured Among Us,” appeared in the Summer 2010 issue.

At Kaiser Pickles, the OU Symbol Signifies a Quality Product and Expanded Marketing

In 1920, Kaiser Pickles was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio by Harry T. Kaiser. The company operated solely as a food distributor with an emphasis on pickles and sauerkraut. As a distributor, its products were sold right off its route trucks to grocery stores, restaurants, and butcher shops throughout Cincinnati.

In the fall of 1990, Kaiser Pickles purchased the Farm Pack Pickle Company in Medina, Ohio. With this purchase we became a fully integrated pickle/pepper manufacturer. We currently have two manufacturing facilities located in Cincinnati made up of approximately 250,000 square feet. Attached to these facilities are two pickle-salting yards consisting of 10 -12,000 gallon tanks capable of handling five million pounds of pickling cucumbers.

As a manufacturer selling mainly to the food service and industrial accounts, it became apparent early on that in order for us to grow outside of our current market into more regional and national markets we would need to receive the Orthodox Union seal of approval, the famed OU symbol. Rabbi Michoel Coleman worked with us over the years to make sure our products met the high quality standards represented by the OU. Just as our customers demanded from us that we should be kosher certified, using the best ingredients representing added quality assurance, so we demanded the same from our raw material suppliers.

Working closely with the Orthodox Union over the years has helped Kaiser Pickles expand its market not only nationally but also to the Caribbean Islands, Puerto Rico, and to countries in the Middle East. We supply products to national and regional restaurant chains under the Kaiser label as well as various private brand names.

Entering our fourth generation, Kaiser Foods and its subsidiaries Kaiser Pickles and Kaiser Transport strive for continued growth and expansion through new technologies as well as our dedication to providing our customers quality at a low cost.
Rabbi Michoel Coleman is Orthodox Union rabbinic coordinator for Kaiser Foods.

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Internet Presence: It’s All About Our Technology

Communications, the backbone of commerce and human civilization since time immemorial, has taken huge leaps over the past two decades. With the advent of the World Wide Web and Internet protocol, what once took much time to dispatch information can now be accomplished almost instantaneously with the click of a button. The global economy has rapidly shrunk because of this, and the amount of information readily available for access is mindboggling. However, what has become the center of attention in this era of the Information Age is the portal that allows access to all this information, the website.

At the Orthodox Union, we are no exception and like most other organizations and companies throughout the globe we have developed numerous websites and applications for our clients and consumers. Primarily, the main web page at http://www.oukosher.org, serves as the gateway to a vast array of information regarding our kosher certification services. Recently, the home page went through a redesign to allow for a more user-friendly, eye-pleasing informative experience. The page was designed to bring together both consumers and companies, so that each may explore what the OU has to offer. With a wide collection of articles and audio-visual presentations, vast amounts of kosher information are easily accessible.

Additionally, as a service to OU certified companies, we have a Featured Companies section on the home page, which displays the logos and information about various OU companies. Furthermore, the page now has scrolling information such as Newly Certified products and establishments, OU News, and Kosher Alerts. Especially important to consumers is our new Product Search function, which helps verify for them if a product is indeed certified kosher by the Orthodox Union. For industrial applications that require an actual letter of certification, we have a link (called LOC Letters) on the top right of our homepage, which will allow interested parties to view and print kosher certificates of non-confidential OU certified products.

OU companies can garner tremendous exposure from their placement on our website. As described above, each time consumers log on to our homepage, they will automatically view the profile of various companies with links to their website. These profiles constantly refresh, exposing a wide range of OU Kosher clients to a vast array of food production corporations. Additionally, companies can find out the latest trends in kosher food production, as well as articles relating to kosher law. For companies and products requesting additional exposure, newly certified companies, products, and brands are periodically refreshed.

This is but the beginning of a constant redesign, redevelopment, and upgrades to our website. Essentially, in the digital era the World Wide Web serves as the main street of commerce, and home pages as the storefront. Featured elsewhere in this issue is information regarding oudirect.org, the powerful website that allow OU companies to manage and view their kosher programs and accounts. Coupled together with some specialty sites such as oupassover.org – our Passover site – and ou.org the site of OU Kosher’s parent organization, we are embarking on an ambitious plan to make OU Kosher information available to all.

Rabbi Eli Eleff is rabbinic coordinator and website administrator for OU Kosher. He graduated from the Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem and received his rabbinic ordination from the prestigious Yeshivas Ohr Hachaim in Kew Gardens Hills, NY. Rabbi Eleff also earned both his BA and MS from Touro College in New York City.

Through the Bluegrass and on the Highways:  An RFR’s Kentucky (and Indiana) Derby

I have been a full-time OU rabbinic field representative for the past 12 years. My job has taken me to all types of places and has given me exposure to people and plants of which I never dreamed.

I was born in London, England, and my rabbinical studies led me to New York City, where I met my wife and thereafter began rabbinical work. Until last year, my family and I resided in Louisville, KY. Although we now live in Cincinnati, OH, I retain the same supervision route as before, which includes Indiana and Kentucky.

My day begins early. When I start my route, I may visit a large baking facility such as Flowers Foods of London KY, Consolidated Biscuit Co, or Kraft Foods North America/Biscuit & Snacks Division. I may then proceed to visit a massive flavor house, like Clarendon Flavor Engineering Inc of Owensboro KY, and then to some dairies.

I drive over 50,000 miles a year, and I have just reached the 600,000 point – all with no speeding tickets, thank God. I stay over in hotels on average of two to three times a week.

I visit over 100 companies. Two of my plants schedule many special productions. One of these plants is Morgan Foods of Austin, Indiana, renowned for its top-quality soup offerings. As one of America’s most sought-after business partners in the private-label food industry, Morgan Foods offers retailers everything they need to win customers and keep them coming back.

Even though Morgan Foods manufactures numerous non-kosher products, the company has undertaken an amazing program to maintain OU certification of many of its products. Every kosher production at Morgan Foods involves kosherization of the facility and full-time OU supervision of kosher productions.

Understanding Bluegrass/Springfield works has been a most interesting experience, as spray-drying is one of the oldest forms of drying — and one of the few technologies available for converting a liquid, slurry or low viscosity paste to a dry solid (free-flowing powder) in one-unit operation. Spray dryers are found in almost every industry, including pharmaceuticals and detergents, paint and pigments, food and dairy, and mining and minerals.

Visiting Little Brownie Bakers, L.L.C. that manufactures Girl Scouts cookies, is always a treat. If you were to ask me what the Garden of Eden smells like, I would reply, “chocolate mint”!

Jif peanut butter, owned by The J.M. Smucker Company, is also on my route. This facility and its staff are a pleasure to work with, and their renowned products fit well with their overall stellar work.

Recently I began visiting a new plant called Bloomfield Farms, which specializes in gluten-free products, Mr. Daniel Sutherland, president of Blend Pak and CEO of Bloomfield Farms, and Ms. Ruth Companella are model examples of how one expertly runs a kosher program. There are nine different gluten-free OU Kosher certified products produced by Bloomfield Farms.

I also visit our friends at Dawn Foods products, the provider to bakery owners with quality commercial food service products for bakery management and the baker owner. I work with our dedicated kosher contact Mr. Ron Foster who excels in keeping up with hundreds of kosher dairy and pareve ingredients at the plant and with all the kosher dairy and pareve production lines.

Let me not forget Najla’s, Inc. a gourmet specialty food manufacturer specializing in all-natural upscale, handmade products made from the highest quality ingredients. And yes, there is a Najla, and a Stasia, and an Azra. Their products are made by these incredibly talented artisans. They never cut corners; never compromise quality or consistency. All Najla’s products are kosher dairy, free of high fructose corn syrup, free of hydrogenated and trans fats, free of preservatives and artificial flavors. It’s like having three pastry chefs in your corner! They do all the work, you get all the praise.

The internationally renowned Mead Johnson Nutritionals, best known for its Enfamil and Enfalac families of infant formulas as well as for our regional children’s nutritional products, including Enfagrow, Enfapro, Enfakid, EnfaSchool, and Sustagen is most fortunate to have Mrs. Evelyn Brady administer its extensive kosher program. Her total dedication to our kosher program is exemplary. The equipment and different lines used at this plant of 2,000 employees used to make all these many different products was a big learning curve for me, but after visiting this plant for more than ten years, I believe I’ve gotten the hang of it.

I visit The Carriage House Companies Inc. Division of Ralcorp, one of America’s leading store brand food manufacturers, having roots that predate the store-brand food industry. Mr. Jeff Williams and Ms. Leiga Cooper do a wonderful job with maintaining our kosher program. Some of the products produced here are salsas, barbeque steak sauces, jams and jellies, chocolate and pancake syrups.

Jim Beam Brands, located in Frankfort, KY, manufactures a large variety of the best known liquor products. Mr. Nathan Capps is a person truly dedicated to our kosher program and is always looking to enhance and add more products to the OU kosher line.

Another big industry I got very involved with is the oil industry, visiting Consolidated Grain & Barge, Inc., where the soybeans come in raw and are crushed. I then visit Owensboro Grain, where the crude soybean oil is sent. The process also includes degumming the oil and then RBD that is, Refined, Bleached and Deodorized.

My special-production work schedule often requires me to work when others are home spending time with their families or sleeping. I am frequently at special-production plants on Sundays, overnight, and at all odd hours. On these days, my work hours exceed 20 hours daily, yet the hardest part of my job is to schedule and be available to all of our partners at any given time.

I share with all my plants that I am not a policeman, seeking to discover problems. Rather, I am there to verify that all is well. If and when a problem is found, we will fix it together. My job is to assist and accommodate companies in every way possible. It has also been my good fortune serving as a matchmaker with different OU companies, and have thereby helped them thrive with business.

As a rabbi, I frequently find myself being a therapist, as many of the employees and sometimes the employers of the companies open up to me with their personal trials and tribulations, seeking my advice and recommendations. I always keep in mind what they tell me so that on my next visit I can follow up and continue to show my care and concern. Sometimes all people need is just a listening ear! On one occasion, I spent over an hour listening to someone without saying a word, and when the speaker was done he said, “Thank you, rabbi; you have such good advice!”

Panic-Free Passover!

Each year, Passover strikes an acute sense of panic in the hearts of most homemakers long before the spring holiday actually arrives. Several weeks in advance, the search starts – looking through cookbooks and recipe clippings, calling friends and family members asking about long-lost recipes, or searching the world-wide web for Passover recipes – something old, something new, something borrowed, something tried and true.

Even though today’s modern kitchens are outfitted with a wide selection of appliances to ease Passover preparation, the kitchen needs to be completely cleaned out and then restocked, from condiments to cookies, from sauces to snack foods. To make meal preparation and cleanup easier, disposable foil containers are often used for turkey, brisket, kugels and vegetables, and many people use fancy disposable paper plates, glasses and cutlery for the larger than usual crowds at the Passover table.

Today, a huge selection of prepared and packaged Passover products are available on supermarket shelves to help make preparation easier for those who don’t want to cook – or for those who don’t have the time. Caterers also offer up a variety of menus in large ads in the local newspaper. One might think that a famine wasn’t far away!

Your grandmother or mother may have had a live carp swimming in the bathtub for her homemade gefilte fish, but today you can buy delicious frozen gefilte fish logs and transform them into a colorful, three-layered loaf that will wow your guests. Instead of roasted chicken, you can add bottled Szechuan sauce and canned pineapple to create a quick, elegant main dish that looks like it took hours to prepare.

With a little creativity and the help of some packaged products, here’s how to prepare some scrumptious Passover fare with flair! Your family and friends will never know – unless you tell them!

TRICOLOR GEFILTE FISH MOLD (Pareve)

The layered look is in!

5 medium carrots, cut in chunks (or 20 mini carrots)
1 package (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach
3 packages frozen gefilte fish, completely thawed

1. Spray a 12-cup fluted tube pan with nonstick spray.
2. Cook carrots in boiling water until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain well.
3. Microwave or steam spinach for 3 to 4 minutes, until thawed. Let cool, then squeeze dry.
4. In a food processor fitted with the steel blade, process spinach until finely ground, about 15 seconds. Add contents of one package of gefilte fish and blend well. Spread mixture evenly in tube pan.
5. Spread with the contents of the second package of gefilte fish to make the second layer.
6. Process drained carrots about 15 seconds. Add contents of the third package of fish to carrots and blend well. Spread evenly in pan to make the third layer.
7. Place a piece of parchment paper on top of fish, then cover pan with aluminum foil.
8. Bake in preheated 350 F oven for 1 1/2 hours. When done, top should be firm to the touch and edges should pull away from sides of pan. A skewer inserted into fish halfway between centre and outside edge should come out clean.
9. Let cool for 20 to 30 minutes. Loosen fish with a long metal spatula. Cover pan with a serving plate, invert and shake gently to unmold. Wipe up any juices that collect on the plate.
10. Cool completely, then cover and refrigerate overnight. Slice and serve with bottled or homemade horseradish, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber slices.

Yield: 16 to 20 servings. This can be made up to two days in advance. Do not freeze.

SAUCY SZECHUAN PINEAPPLE CHICKEN (Meat)

You’ll get rave reviews when you serve this dish to family and friends at your Passover table!

3 onions, sliced
2 chickens (3 lbs each), cut up
Pepper and paprika, to taste
1 1/2 cups Szechuan-style duck sauce
1 can (19 oz) pineapple chunks, drained (reserve liquid)

1. Place onions in the bottom of a large sprayed roasting pan. Remove and discard fat from chickens but do not remove skin. Place chicken pieces on top of onions. Sprinkle lightly with seasonings.
2. Pour duck sauce and pineapple chunks over chicken, along with half of the reserved liquid.
3. Bake covered at 400°F for 1/2 hour. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake 1 hour longer, basting occasionally.
4. When cool, refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
5. Discard chicken skin and congealed fat from pan juices. Reheat covered at 350°F for 25 minutes.

Yield: 12 servings. Reheats and/or freezes well.

Copyright © Norene Gilletz 2011.

Norene Gilletz of Toronto, Canada is a kosher cookbook author and food consultant. She is the author of nine cookbooks, which include The NEW Food Processor Bible: 30th Anniversary Edition (Whitecap, February 2011) and Norene’s Healthy Kitchen (Whitecap). Her motto is “Food that’s good for you should taste good!” Her Pickle-icious feature appeared to great acclaim in BTUS Winter 2010/11 issue. For more information, visit http://www.gourmania.com or contact her at .

A Passover Primer

Any traditional Jew will tell you that the most pivotal time of the kosher year is the Festival of Passover. But it is also the most intense period of the year for the many food companies who try to offer their products to the kosher market. This is because kosher keeping Jews are spending a lot of time and money buying food for Passover. In fact, according to one estimate, forty percent of all kosher products are purchased during the six weeks prior to Passover.

There are a number of reasons for the pre-Passover shopping sprees. First of all, Passover is the most celebrated holiday of the entire Jewish calendar (making the market share even larger than the rest of the year). The seder—a family-centered ritual celebrated on the first two nights of Passover and organized around food and wine—is the most commonly observed ritual of the entire Jewish year. While food is central to the seder, it is also pivotal to the rest of this eight-day festival. In fact, according to some Jewish thinkers, how we eat on Passover reflects how we eat the rest of the year.

Just as significant is the fact that Passover requires re-stocking the entire kosher kitchen. Foods containing five grains (wheat, oats, barley, spelt, and rye) and their derivatives are completely forbidden (unless they are in the form of matzah, unleavened bread). To top that off, Jews of European descent refrain from other grain products (like corn, soy, rice, beans, among other staples) as well. Even foods that do not contain these ingredients are frequently processed on equipment shared with them (also prohibited according to Jewish law). This means that the vast majority of items found in the year-round kosher kitchen are unacceptable for Passover use. Entire pantries must therefore be repurchased, from condiments to snack foods, to oils. Between Passover’s popularity, the centrality of food to the Passover experience, and the many food restrictions special to the holiday, it is no wonder that so much food is purchased for it.

Because of the many food restrictions on Passover and the association of many Jewish foods with “tradition,” it is understandable why many think that the Passover diet consists of matzah, brisket, gefilte fish, horseradish, matzah balls, and syrupy-sweet wine. To whatever degree that these stereotypes were ever true, they are certainly not true now. Within the past few decades, the kosher palette (to borrow the title of a popular kosher gourmet cookbook) has grown much more sophisticated. The kosher market is now looking to and borrowing recipes from Italian, French, Asian, Southern, and other cuisines.

The same is no less true for Passover. For these reasons, even a “kosher” brand like Gold’s is producing Passover-certified duck sauce (and a good one, I might add) in addition to the horseradishes with which the brand is commonly associated. While there will always be a place for matzah balls and macaroons on the Passover table, there is also room for beef bourguignon.

The tastes of the Kosher market are not only expanding but also becoming more refined. The market now has much higher culinary standards than it had, for example, forty years ago. This greater sophistication has also shaken up the Passover market. Two perfect examples are the standards of cheese and wine.

It was not long ago that Passover cheese was thought to be bland and heavily processed. These days, many Kosher for Passover cheeses are meeting a higher standard. One example is the artisanal Israeli cheese maker Barkanit. While they make an assortment of sheep and goat cheeses, one of their best is Gilboa hard sheep cheese. Those with a desire for authentic Italian cheese can now purchase scamorza, provolone, and fresh mozzarella cheeses from the Italian brand Yotvata. Recently, the gourmet cheese maker Cabot has also taken the Passover plunge, adding their sharp cheddar to the market.

The Passover wine market has experienced an even greater revolution. For the past two thousand years, wine has been integral to the Passover holiday. At the seder, Jews are obligated to drink four cups of wine to celebrate their freedom from Egyptian bondage thousands of years ago. Forty years ago, the only options consisted of overly sweet wines. But with the greater desire within the kosher market for sophisticated dry wines, the options have multiplied such that there are now hundreds of great tasting Kosher for Passover wines from all over the world.

Take your pick of styles and varietals, and it is very likely that there is a kosher equivalent. Not only are there many authentic Kosher for Passover Bordeauxs, but also Cote du Rhones, Asatian Rieslings, Burgundies, Sauternes, and more. And that is just among French wines. Among Italian Kosher wines, there are Barolos, Chiantis, Procsecos, Pinot Grigios. The list of varietals and regions featuring kosher wines goes on and on. While there are always new kosher wines on the marketplace each Passover season, one notable addition this year is a line of Alsatian wines—Gewirtzteminer, Riesling, and Pinot Gris—from a special kosher production of the winemaker Willm.

Even those within the kosher market who have kept their sweet tooth for wine are looking for more sophisticated options like Bartenura’s popular Italian Moscato, Herzog Select’s Late Harvest Riesling and Late Harvest Gewirtztiminer. For those who really want to splurge for a sweet there is the kosher production of Chateau Guiraud Grand Cru Sauternes. Passover wine has certainly come a long way.

So what would it take for a company join in on the Passover trend? The process of getting a product certified for Passover is similar to that of approval for other new products, though (like everything involving Passover) much more intense. Companies interested in Passover approval submit forms detailing their products and ingredients to our Passover department. These ingredients are carefully reviewed. Should a company have trouble finding an acceptable Passover ingredient, the Orthodox Union—as part of its mission of superior customer service — tries as much as possible to help identify the appropriate ingredient or to suggest alternatives.

The fee for Passover certification is assessed based on the time (broken down in eight-hour shifts) and expenses needed for a rabbinical field representative (RFR) to oversee this special production. Because of the special significance of the laws of Passover and their many differences from the rest of the kosher year, the vast majority of products require this on-site rabbinic presence to become certified for Passover.

Once the formulas and facilities are approved, the actual production can begin. The RFR first kosherizes the product line to purge it of anything unacceptable for Passover. Manufacturing can then take place, overseen the entire time by the RFR. As long as everything goes according to plan, the resulting foods can bear the OU-P, the trademarked symbol indicating that they meet the Orthodox Union’s high standards for Passover use.

The time, effort, and fees (though it is not as much as you might think; ask your rabbinic coordinator for a price quote) involved in certifying products for Passover has frightened many away. But think of it as an investment, just as one would for any other new product being developed. In fact, a well-made Passover product by a respected brand is very likely, if not guaranteed, to gain sufficient market share for the Passover investment to pay off.

Every year, new Passover products are coming on the marketplace. Last year, the brand Health Gardens came out with a Passover-certified xylitol for those on sugar-free diets. Kedem introduced a sparkling pomegranate juice. Savion introduced a line of Fireman’s Frenzy sauces. Season introduced Moroccan sardines. This year also features many new and exciting Passover products. Among them is the gourmet Jane’s Crazy Mixed Up Salt. Shkedia is adding to its delicious Passover confection line with Chocolate Covered Citrus Peels, Chocolate Covered Coffee Beans, and Chocolate Covered Nuts. The specialty brand Sonny and Joe’s is coming out with Passover certified babaganoush and Eggplant Matbucha. Reisman’s and Lilly’s are each adding to their line of Passover baked goods.

This all begs the question, what will the next enterprising and forward-thinking company come up with for Passover next year?
Rabbi David Polsky has been serving the Orthodox Union’s Kosher Consumer Hotline since 2004. He studied at Yeshiva University where he received his B.A. in 2001 and his rabbinic ordination from YU’s Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary in 2005. Rabbi Polsky’s warmth, patience, and professionalism are always evident as he responds to more than one hundred consumer kosher questions, daily. He lives with his wife in New York City.

Everything You Wanted to Know About OU Direct – and Never in Your Wildest Dreams Thought to Ask

From the moment it appeared upon the scene and changed the face of kosher certification forever, OU Direct has been the subject of intense speculation, rampant rumors and wild conjecture. What can it do? Where did it come from? What powers it? Who is behind it? Why is there grass growing in the ice cream in the picture on the log-in screen?

Details about OU Direct are not Group 1 information (definition: able to be obtained from any source). Veiled in secrecy and closely guarded, the inner workings of this revolutionary and innovative website have never before been disclosed to the kosher manufacturing public. Until now, that is.

To dispel the myths and address the myriad of misinformation circulating on the kosher street, an unnamed but highly placed OU Direct authority with a Group Six (allowed) clearance has anonymously shared the following inside information. What follows will be surprising and, in some cases, shocking. All of it has been independently verified. Here, unfettered and unedited, are the secret truths about what OU Direct is, and what it is not.

OU Direct IS…… Empowering! Everything you could ever need to run your kosher program, and more, is right there at your fingertips! It’s your one-stop shop for managing your every interaction with OU Kosher. With a simple, quick log in, you and the personnel you authorize in your satellite plants will have immediate access to:

• Your schedules A and B – current as of 30 seconds prior to your request;
• Your OU invoices – both past and current, with up to the minute status;
• Your OU Kosher Letters of Certification – for every label of every product in every plant;
• Your OU Forms and Applications – including new plant, new product, new ingredient, private label, product termination, plant termination and private label termination forms;
• Your OU symbols – camera ready JPG and EPS files for every possible OU symbol that you can use on your product packaging.

About the only piece of your company’s OU Kosher program that can’t be found right now on OU Direct is YOU! Log in today to this oasis of sanity in a crazy, confused and mixed-up world.

OU Direct IS NOT……. Dairy! Although the OU Direct logo is made up of an OU followed by the word Direct spelled with a capital “D”, this is NOT meant to indicate the OU Dairy symbol, and OUDirect.org is not meant solely for OU Dairy companies. Not understanding this, some OU Meat and OU Pareve companies have attempted to log on by going to OUMirect.org and OUPirect.org. This will not work. OU Fish companies are strongly advised not to log on to OUFirect.org, since this is apparently a well-known phishing site. OU Direct is available to all OU companies. Regardless of whether your own kosher symbol is OU D, OU Fish, OU Meat, OU Pareve or even just plain OU, OUDirect.org is where you belong.

OU Direct IS………. Energy Efficient! No more sharpening pencils, running to the fax machine, making phone calls, copying Letters of Certification, or any of the other myriad of previous kosher program maintenance activities that used to sap your strength and tire you out! Now, from the comfort of your leather, padded, executive chair, you can keep your program up to date with just a few mouse clicks. Even the formerly exhaustive task of locating acceptable ingredients has been simplified, with the access that OU Direct gives you to the UKD database. With this amazing tool, you can quickly locate and identify exactly the right raw material you need in your plant and have the comfort of knowing that it is already approved and accepted in the OU system. Once you have located the item, just click on it and then put it in your shopping cart.

Even if the item is not in the UKD, you can still submit it and attach an electronic copy of the kosher letter of certification that your supplier has emailed to you. As soon as you submit the cart, you will receive a receipt and, in most cases, you will find the item already added to your schedule A! All you need to do then is sit back, relax and plan what you are going to do with all of your newfound free time.
OU Direct IS NOT……… Taxable! The U.S. Tax Court, in its landmark IRS vs. Bagel Bob decision, ruled by a 4-to-1 majority that OU Direct is a non-taxable benefit to OU companies. In the aforementioned case, Bob Bagelberg, Founder and CEO of Bagel Bob’s Bakeries, was on OU Direct, creating customized OU Kosher letters of certification for the private labels on his new Boysenberry Bagel product. As each letter rolled perfectly off the printer, he could not contain his enthusiasm, and he loudly proclaimed, “OU Direct is awesome! It’s worth a million bucks!” A customer at the shop, who happened to be an IRS agent, overheard Mr. Bagelberg’s statement and proceeded to audit the company and charge it with tax evasion for failing to disclose $1,000,000 of unreported income – the value of having OU Direct!

The court, in its decision, reasoned that the peace of mind and state of happiness that result from being able to update schedules A and B, create customized letters of certification, authorize new products and ingredients, identify acceptable raw materials, access financial data, and have what is essentially 24/7 control of a company’s kosher program – in short, all the benefits that OU Direct offers – are impossible to place a value on since, as the court stated, “You can’t buy happiness.” Although the IRS appealed, the Court rejected their position, stating that the IRS claim was simply a case of database envy.

OU Direct IS…………. Secure! OU Kosher fully appreciates the sensitivity of the information that you share with us and goes to every extent possible to assure the confidentiality of your data. OU Direct utilizes high levels of security to protect your valuable information. Your connection to OU Direct is securely encrypted with 128-bit encryption. The connection uses TLS 1.0. The connection is encrypted using AES_128_CBC, with SHA 1 for message authentication, and RSA as the key exchange mechanism. You can sleep well at night knowing that everything you submit via OU Direct is safe and secure.

OU Direct IS NOT………… a Dating Service. Granted, one of the main benefits of OU Direct is unfettered access to the UKD (Unbelievable Kosher Database), which enables companies to find exactly the right ingredient match that they have been searching for. And it helps them find it based on OU’s unique 29 (almost) dimensions of compatibility, such as source company, item description, category, kosher status and kosher certification. But OU Direct cannot help you to find your life partner. And the only lonely hearts found lurking on OU Direct belong to artichokes and palms. Who, incidentally, are just waiting on the UKD for you to take them to your plant and make them your own. Log on today and review your ingredient matches for free!

OU Direct IS……………. Liberating! Once you begin doing all your kosher paperwork using OU Direct, you will never go back to pen and paper again. Who wouldn’t become addicted to a system that dispenses with submitting any forms and enables you to transmit all of your kosher information electronically? And, with OU Direct, you are no longer tied down to one long, comprehensive kosher letter of certification for your company, listing every product that you ever dreamed of making and had approved. You can create your own customized kosher letters. Feel free to mix and match plants and products, in-house and private label items. As long as it’s on your schedule B, you can put it on whatever kosher letter you need, in a choice of three different formats, of your own design. Let the creative juices flow!

OU Direct IS NOT……….. Illegal! A team of OU attorneys, based on extensive research and consultation with numerous state and federal justice authorities, has determined conclusively that “it is not a crime to streamline your kosher program and make your life easier”. In saving paper and energy, OU Direct is both green and contributes to longevity by removing stress and frustration from your life. And no animals were harmed in the development, implementation and administration of OU Direct. OU Direct – the smart, sensible and safe choice for your kosher program!

OU Direct IS…………. Free! Unlike other offers you receive, which try to lure you through the door with all sorts of low price, all-inclusive promises and then “nickel and dime” you for every service, OU Direct is included as part of your OU-provided kosher program absolutely free! The cost to your company? Nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada. It is just another example of the OU Kosher commitment to providing your company with the quickest and most efficient tools and systems to manage your kosher program, so that you can keep your focus on the important business of providing your consumers with high quality, kosher product.

A small but dedicated OU team of IT professionals has toiled for days, weeks and years, working in relative obscurity and total anonymity, to bring about a system that has revolutionized the way true professionals do kosher. Don’t miss the train before it pulls out of the station! Log on to OU Direct today and be an active participant in the bright new world of kosher!

Rabbi Avrohom Stone serves as OU Kosher Senior Rabbinic Field Representative visiting with OU certified companies throughout the country. His instructive and entertaining articles frequently appear in Behind the Union Symbol, and always elicit many positive responses.

Wise Foods Encourages Snackers to Snack Loud! Snack Proud!…and Snack Kosher!

At Wise® Foods, our goal is simple; to make real food for real people…great tasting snacks made from the finest ingredients and backed by exceptional customer service. From our familiar favorites to our newest varieties, we strive to be the snack our customers are proud to share with friends and family.

The Wise® story begins in 1921, when Mr. Earl Wise, Sr, then a young grocer, had too many potatoes. Being a frugal businessman, he decided to use the extra potatoes to make potato chips. He did all of the work by hand and sold the chips in brown paper bags from his store.

Earl’s chips enjoyed instant popularity and the company he founded, Wise® Foods, has grown into a leading regional salty snack manufacturer in the eastern United States. For the past 90 years, from small batches in his mother’s kitchen to a remodeled garage to the current state-of-the-art facility located in Berwick, PA, one thing has never changed: Earl Wise, Sr., and the company that bears his name, make terrific, all-natural chips!

It all began with a single variety of all natural potato chips, but over the years, Wise® has expanded its product offering along with its manufacturing capabilities. We are now proud to offer a wide variety of salty snacks under recognizable brands such as: Wise®, Ridgies®, New York Deli®, Cheez Doodles®, Dipsy Doodles®, and Bravos®!

Wise® Foods has long been a proponent of kosher snacks. Our customers expect high quality snacks and many of them are looking for the kosher certification for specific dietary, religious, or health reasons. To that end, Wise® has established a relationship with the leading organization for kosher certification, the Orthodox Union. Wise® has a strong partnership with our OU certification expert, Rabbi Aharon Brun-Kestler, and is extremely proud to offer a variety of OU (Dairy) and OU (Pareve) kosher certified snacks. The majority of Wise® process lines in Berwick, PA are kosher. Specifically, Wise® product lines which include kosher certified items include: Potato Chips, Tortilla Chips, Onion Rings, Corn Chips, Pretzels, and Salsa.

In the past year, the company has also invested in new equipment to further improve our production processes and to make the kosher certification process even easier. Investments were made in new stainless steel seasoning tubes and seasoning augers, and separate seasoning lines have been installed for kosher products within the Wise® plant facility.

There’s no doubt that kosher food practices help Wise® to make high quality products and the OU kosher certification keeps Wise® Foods competitive in our core marketplaces, where consumers and retailers alike desire a broad offering of delicious, quality kosher snacks!

Our newest product offerings – Wise® Baked Potato Crisps and Wise Bravos® Ranch and Sweet & Spicy Tortilla Chips – also carry kosher certifications. For more information about Wise® snacks, please visit us online at: http://www.wisesnacks.com, or contact us directly: Phone: 1-888-759-4401 Email: ; Mail: Wise Foods, Inc, 228 Raseley Street, Berwick, PA 18603-4533
Rabbi Aharon Brun-Kestler is Orthodox Union rabbinic coordinator for Wise Foods

Chips Off the Old Block: In its 90th Year, Utz Quality Foods Follows Traditions of its Founders

In the snack food industry, Utz Quality Foods, Inc. has always been known for freshness and the quality ingredients that it uses in manufacturing its products. It’s been that way since the company’s humble beginnings 90 years ago this year, when Bill and Salie Utz began making potato chips in their Hanover, PA home. Salie used her knowledge of good ‘ol Pennsylvania Dutch cooking to provide customers with the highest quality potato chips in the marketplace and Bill Utz delivered them directly to stores and farmer’s markets in the Hanover and Baltimore areas.

Salie’s quality cooking tradition continues to this day, as Utz uses minimal processing which allows its products to retain a maximum amount of nutrients present in the natural ingredients. Over 50 percent of its product line is All Natural and has been that way from the start. Salt and seasoning levels are controlled to maintain a sodium content which is lower than many other processed foods. In addition, the nutritional content of Utz products is regularly tested and printed clearly on the package labels. Utz is so certain of the quality of its products, that every package is unconditionally guaranteed.

While its distribution network and coverage has certainly grown over the years, the company’s philosophy remains the same as Bill Utz’s when he delivered directly to the stores and farmer’s markets: “If you manage the process yourself from start to finish, then you can ensure that your customers are purchasing top quality products.” Their direct store delivery system has more than eight hundred company-controlled routes running from Maine to North Carolina. In surveys, Utz has found that 80 percent of its chips are purchased and consumed within a week of manufacture.

Its long-standing commitment to quality led Utz Quality Foods, Inc. to become OU certified in 1996. Today, three out of its four manufacturing plants and over 95 percent of its product line is OU certified as either pareve or dairy.

These kosher products range from its many varieties of potato chips, with a production of one million pounds every week, to its large assortment of pretzels, with its production of 900,000 pounds every week. Utz also produces cheese curls, tortilla chips (baked, natural, organic, and restaurant style), popcorn and party mix, offering more than 90 flavors or varieties of snacks in total. Utz also carries salsas, crackers and specialty items such as chocolate-covered pretzels, seasonal pretzel barrels and sports mixes.

In 1997, Utz expanded its kosher certification to include two Kosher for Passover chip items (Regular and No Salt). These items are manufactured to adhere to the strict dietary regulations of the holiday.

“Being certified kosher is no longer simply about following religious dietary law,” says Tom Dempsey, President of Utz Quality Foods, Inc. “Today, many consumers are turning to kosher certified product for allergen and health-related reasons. The OU symbol represents the use of pure ingredients and has become a universal quality seal of approval.”

Kosher certification has opened up new distribution channels for Utz, expanding its territories and bringing on new accounts such as kosher grocery stores. However, the Utz reputation for quality has spread far beyond its own distribution area. The Utz Mail Order division accommodates the growing national and international demand for its products. In recent years, Utz has seen an increased interest in its kosher products nationally and internationally. Whether customers are purchasing for themselves or as a gift, kosher certified products continue to be in high demand.

Utz has also created a dedicated space within the nutritional section of its website where all kosher products are highlighted, as well as other nutritional data. See utzsnacks.com/nutritioninfo.html) for easy reference.

Since 1921, the Utz name has stood for quality. With a strong tradition of family and professional leadership and Utz’s thousands of loyal employees dedicated to providing the freshest, best tasting products, Utz continues to be the choice of customers everywhere.

Rabbi Aharon Brun-Kestler is Orthodox Union rabbinic coordinator for Utz Quality Foods.

Have you Herrd?  Herr Snack Foods Have Been OU Kosher for 30 Years

For over 30 years, Herr Foods Incorporated has been manufacturing snack foods with OU certification. A recognized leader in the snack food industry, Herr’s is headquartered in Nottingham, in Southeastern Pennsylvania, about an hour from Philadelphia and Baltimore. The family-owned and-operated company began 65 years ago and has mastered the ability to continually introduce innovative products and packaging needed to satisfy ever-changing appetites and tastes of the snack food consumer.

The Orthodox Union is the most widely recognized kosher certifying agency in the world. Some of the Herr’s sales market opportunities are in areas that encompass large Jewish populations. Many of the sales accounts request kosher status for the products that Herr’s manufactures and sells. Herr’s recognizes that many consumers view the kosher certification as an extra level of product quality supervision.

Tom Chase, Research & Development Technologist at Herr’s, is the current kosher coordinator. Tom clearly recalls his first visit with Rabbi Yitzchak Friedman. “We are predominately gentiles in this processing plant and we will not understand the issues involved with food laws. However, we at Herr’s have an agreement with the Orthodox Union that assures that when an OU or an OU-D symbol appears on our package, the consumer buying that product will have confidence that the product in the package will be what the symbol implies.” Herr’s works closely with the current rabbinical field representative, Rabbi Richard Levine, to do just that.

Phil Bernas, V.P. of Research & Development/Quality Assurance, explained the manufacturing process for kosher certification. “All of our potato chips are either kosher pareve or kosher dairy. There is a complete cleanup (hot water and an oil solvent cleaner) after kosher dairy products are manufactured before running a kosher pareve product. We also run kosher for Passover chips using cottonseed oil. We have one pretzel line that is dedicated to making pareve pretzel thins and circle H minis. All other pretzels lines are kosher dairy.

On the corn line we did have kosher pareve products and kosher dairy on the same line. This required a hot water (180°) cleanup after running a kosher dairy product. Now the white corn tortilla line is kosher pareve and the yellow corn line is kosher dairy. All the items (cheese curls, snack friez and baked potato crisps) manufactured in the new plant are kosher dairy. All popcorn items are kosher dairy.”

Herr’s offers a free factory tour at the Nottingham headquarters. Visitors are given a guided tour of the factory to see how all of the Herr’s snacks are made. A favorite part of the tour is sampling the warm potato chips right out of the cooker. Many Orthodox schools and families visit the Herr’s Snack Factory each year. The tour is fun, educational and appeals to all ages.

Herr’s has company-owned branches in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia. Herr’s national sales team has sales in 48 states, as well as export sales and distributors. The Herr’s online store is another way for customers to purchase Herr’s snacks to be shipped to their home or to send as gifts to others. Herr’s online is an easy way to send kosher snacks to your family and friends. If you have any questions about purchasing online, just call the toll free number, 1-800-284-7488 during the weekday business hours of 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. and the staff will be happy to help you.

Herr Foods Inc. has been adding flavor to the lives of families for 65 years. From the very beginning, James S. Herr’s commitment to bring the freshest, best-tasting snacks foods has been the standard while staying grounded in what matters most – family, excellence and satisfied customers.

Crystal Head Vodka Awarded OU Kosher Certification

Crystal Head Vodka, created by entertainer Dan Aykroyd and American landscape artist and portraitist John Alexander, is now certified kosher by the Orthodox Union, the world’s largest and most respected kosher certification agency.

Crystal Head Vodka is quadruple-distilled and triple-filtered through Herkimer diamond crystals. Produced from water sourced from a deep glacier lake in Newfoundland, Canada, it is a Pure Spirit, free of any additives such as sugar, glycerin or citrus oil. “Attaining OU certification is exciting news for the brand because it allows all followers of dietary laws to enjoy a one of a kind, ultra premium vodka”, says Jonathan Hemi, Vice President, Globefill Inc.

Crystal Head Vodka is the fastest growing ultra premium vodka brand on the market. In recognition of the brand’s performance in its first 18 months, Crystal Head Vodka was named a “Rising Star” by the Beverage Information Group, publishers of Cheers magazine and producers of the annual Cheers Beverage Conference. According to Charles Forman, Editor of the magazine, “Crystal Head Vodka, through its attractive packaging, product quality and well-timed entrance into the market has shown that even during a challenging economy, consumers are willing to trade up to the right brand.”

According to 2010 data compiled from IMPACT, Crystal Head Vodka reached the one million bottle mark faster than Grey Goose, Belvedere and Choppin vodkas.

Rabbi Eliyahu Safran, OU Kosher’s Vice President, Communications and Marketing, was “gratified to welcome Crystal Head Vodka to the ever-growing list of the high class vodka and liquor products that have gained OU certification in recent years.”

The striking skull-shaped bottle celebrates the mystical legend of the 13 Crystal Heads possessed by tribal cultures such as Aztec, the Mayan and the Navajo and recalls the celebration of the Mexican “Day of the Dead” tradition.

Rated 91 by The Tasting Panel Magazine, Crystal Head Vodka continues to gain distribution across the country and can be found in restaurants, clubs and bars as well as wine and spirit shops.

Crystal Head Vodka can be enjoyed in its purest form, shaken over ice with a squeeze of lime, in a classic martini or in a variety of cocktails. For more information or to contact directly, please visit http://www.crystalheadvodka.com

Rabbi Yaakov Mendelson is Orthodox Union rabbinic coordinator for Crystal Head Vodka..

From the Heart of Chilean Wine - Growing Country Comes Luis Felipe Edwards Wines

Chile has a long history as a wine producing country, with Spanish colonists bringing vines with them as they settled the country during the sixteenth century. It wasn’t until the 1980’s that Chile flourished as a major wine producing country. During this time there was significant investment in modern winemaking equipment and upgraded winemaking technology, which gained Chile an international reputation for producing good quality, easy drinking wines. Chile had arrived on the world winemaking map.

Chile is a long narrow country, with natural boundaries of the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. This unique setting blesses Chile with ideal growing conditions to produce very fruity wines that are able to fully express their varietal character. The main wine producing area in Chile is in the Central Valley, stretching south from Santiago, with smaller finger valleys running east to west from the Andes to the Pacific Ocean producing more premium wines.

The History of Luis Felipe Edwards Wine Group

The history of Luis Felipe Edwards Wines dates back to 1976, when Luis Felipe Edwards Snr, (Senior) purchased the large Fundo San José estate in Puquillay Colchagua Valley, a prime wine-producing area in Chile’s Colchagua Valley.

In the early 1990s, Luis Felipe Edwards Snr decided to produce wine under his own name and so he built a modern winery equipped with the latest state of the art technology. Today, Luis Felipe Edwards Wine Group is the largest 100 percent family-owned wine company in Chile. Luis Felipe Edwards Snr is still actively involved in the management of the winery along with two of his sons, a daughter, and two sons-in-law. Since the 1970s, Luis Felipe Edwards Wine Group has continued to acquire more vineyards in the Colchagua, Maule and Leyda Valleys as well as expanding the original Fundo San José.

It has been clear for some time that the best quality red wines were grown on hillsides of the valley. Recognizing the potential for creating something very special, Luis Felipe Edwards Wine Group decided to push this principle to the limit and started planting vines on the top of the high hills of the Colchagua Valley, at an altitude of 900 meters above sea level, making these the highest vineyards in the Colchagua Valley. The high altitude is the inspiration for the name of the LFE 900 hilltop project.

This bold vineyard project of transforming steep arid mountaintops into high quality vineyards involved many challenges. Supplying water to the vineyards involves 3,500 meters of pipelines passing through eight pumping stations, which supply water to 25 kilometers of drip irrigation pipes. All of this has been accomplished with a high degree of environmental sensitivity, including replanting most of the trees and shrubs that have been conserved in their natural state.

To date a total of 130 hectares have been planted on the top of the hills, of varieties including Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Carmenere, Merlot, Malbec, Petite Syrah, Mourvedre, Petit Verdot, Grenache Noir and Viognier.

At the same time as the LFE 900 project was being undertaken, Luis Felipe Edwards Snr was investing in the coastal Valley of Leyda, an exciting, emerging region for growing the premium white varieties Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, and the red grape Pinot Noir. LFE’s “Marea de Leyda” estate, whose vineyards are currently the closest to the sea out of all the vineyards in the Leyda Valley, is planted predominantly with Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, with smaller plots of Chardonnay and Syrah.

Leyda was not the end of the growth of Luis Felipe Edwards Wine Group, as we headed south to the Maule Valley and acquired 400 hectares of land located 30 kilometers from the Pacific Ocean, close to the coastal range of mountains at an altitude of 120 meters above sea level. This patch will be planted this year, mainly with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Carmenere, Cabernet Franc and Carignan, hoping to be harvesting the first grapes by 2013.

Elevating Quality

Our modern winery is equipped with the most updated European equipment to ensure that Luis Felipe Edwards wines will always meet the highest international quality standards. This includes state-of-the-art bottling and labeling machines, high technology pumps, filters, pneumatic presses and cooling and heating equipment. All Luis Felipe Edwards winemaking and bottling processes are environmentally friendly and certified to international standards.

Currently, the company exports brands including including Luis Felipe Edwards, Santa Luz, Don Cayetano, Terra Vega, Don Julio, Alto Los Romeros, Autoritas and Claro, to over 50 countries. Luis Felipe Edwards award winning wines are recognized internationally as one of the Chile’s leading wines, produced by skilful local winemakers and assisted by top international consultants.

Kosher Wines

The company’s kosher project began in the late 1990’s when an importer from Israel approached us at Vinexpo in Bordeaux, France, requesting for our wines to become kosher certified. He was well familiar with the quality of our non-kosher wines. That was the spark that ignited our kosher wines campaign. Israel was our initial kosher market which then expanded to France, Morocco, Canada and finally to the United States, where we have just finished a working agreement with a previous importer.

Today Luis Felipe Edwards Wine Group is the main producer of kosher wines in Chile and is the largest wine exporter to Israel under two brands – Terra Vega and Don Julio. We are proud of our kosher wines, produced with the same care and attention to detail as our award-winning non-kosher ranges.

Our kosher certification process is supervised by the Orthodox Union and its kosher Chile representative, Rabbi Shoshan Ghoori. OU certification and its highly regarded OU symbol is recognized throughout the world as a statement of quality and integrity. We know that OU certification adds an extra level of credibility to our highly sought after line of kosher wines.

We produce different wine varieties; all of which are dry wines, under different brands of products. Most of the brands are mevushal, which means that the wine undergoes a very fast pasteurization in which the temperature of the must is elevated rapidly and is then rapidly decreased. With the former, we avoid simmering the must and the resulting loss of flavors and aromas.

The entire process is handled by the OU team to ensure the kosher status of the wine. They are present in the winery to physically tip the fruit into the crush, and for all subsequent processes through fermentation and bottling.

Rabbi Ghoori commented that, “It is a pleasure working all these many years with this excepcional and aristocratic family-run winery. From their executive front office in Santiago to their professional team at the winery, they have made the normally difficult process of producing quality kosher wines a smooth experience that we always look forward to with gusto.”

Or, as they say in Chile, “Me gusta ese vino – I like that wine.”

Rabbi Shmuel Singer is Orthodox Union rabbinic coordinator for Luis Felipe Edwards wines.

Kosher Around the Globe

What do Paris, New York and Mexico have in common? Answer – kosher certification! Kosher certification has had steady growth over the past twenty years, by an average rate of 15 percent a year internationally. With thousands of products becoming kosher each year, the kosher consumer has choices that were not available to our parents and grandparents fifty years ago.

October through December were busy months for those of us in the food industry. With Sial, the world’s largest food show in Paris, Kosherfest, the International Kosher Food Show in New Jersey and the Internacional Kosher Expo in Mexico, it was a busy time for food manufacturers and kosher buyers.

Paris in October, when I was there, is unbelievably beautiful. The weather is crisp but not yet cold enough to have to bundle up. I was lucky to be in one of the most beautiful cities in the world to promote kosher food certification. I love my job — who wouldn’t — getting to go to Paris for work, where on behalf of OU Kosher I would meet with over 6,000 food and ingredient manufacturers to explore kosher certification!

OU is the world’s largest, most respected kosher certification agency. With over 70 percent of the kosher retail market being OU certified, it’s no wonder the OU is the most sought after kosher certification by manufacturers, as well as consumers.

Consumers trust the reliability of the OU’s kosher standards, while businesses know that having the OU on their products enhances their marketability. The OU has grown into the world leader for kosher certification, certifying more over 500,000 products in over 80 countries.
My trip to Paris took me to Sial, one of the world’s largest food trade shows. There I met many OU certified companies as well as many international companies from countries like India, Turkey, China, Vietnam, Israel, South Africa and South America. I only speak English, Hebrew and a few words of Yiddish, while my colleague, Rabbi Yisroel Hollander from Belgium, speaks French, Flemish and English. Together we managed to communicate with people from all over the world, sometimes cryptically. The fascinating common denominator was that when we mentioned the word “kosher” or “kasha,” the food manufacturers would smile and exclaim “Ahh, kosher” and shake their heads in understanding.

“Kosher” has become an international word representing a high quality standard of certification right up there with “food safety,” “organic” and “natural.” Companies know that in order to capture a larger portion of food sales it is important that they attract a large consumer base with products that appeal to everyone. Recent studies have shown that there is a large segment of consumers outside of the traditional “Jewish kosher consumer,” who purchase kosher food for a variety of reasons, including, food safety, health and reliability.
Kosherfest, which took place at the end of October in Secaucus, NJ was an astounding sold out success this year. With a strong international presence from Canada, Argentina, and Israel, Kosherfest was the place to be for everyone in the kosher food industry. As I travel and meet companies who are interested in selling their products to the kosher market, I always mention Kosherfest as the premier trade event for them to introduce their products to the kosher market.

My next trip took me to Mexico. The first annual Expo Kosher Internacional in Mexico City was well attended by the Mexican Jewish community as well as buyers looking for kosher products. I met people from South America, Israel and the United States – all gathering together to promote kosher in Mexico.

There are approximately 60,000 Jews living in Mexico; Mexico City alone has 40,000 Jews, representing the largest concentration of Jews in Mexico. I enjoyed the warmth and hospitality of the Jewish Mexican community.

Visiting Expo Kosher Internacional Mexico brought back memories of the first Kosherfest in 1988. At Kosherfest’s inception 22 years ago, the kosher industry in the U.S. was just beginning to dream of its eventual growth and development. The potential for growth for Mexican food manufacturers is strong, particularly for export. In addition, there is tremendous interest in kosher food from those in the Mexican Christian community who are seeking healthier, safer foods.

I can’t help thinking how the very core of being a Jew and keeping kosher has become a world phenomenon. Companies around the globe recognize the importance of kosher food as a business decision to increase their bottom line. And I’m always ready to meet with these companies at shows to tell them just how valuable OU certification can be for them.
Phyllis Koegel serves as the Marketing Director of OU Kosher based in New York City. She received her MBA from Pace University and resides in Cedarhurst, Long Island, NY.

Using Recipes from South Africa, Joburg Brings Kosher Delicacies to American Tables

Rabbi Eliyahu Safran, OU Kosher Vice President of Communications and Marketing, declared, “The Orthodox Union is pleased to certify the ever popular South African Joburg™ Kosher Biltong and Boerewors beef products, so that they may now be enjoyed by the ever-growing kosher market place in the United States.”

Joburg Kosher Beef Biltong and Boerewors Gourmet Sausages are currently available via the internet at http://www.joburgkosher.com and at kosher restaurants in Philadelphia, Teaneck, NJ, New York City, Staten Island, NY, and Skokie, Il. A full scale rollout to kosher specialty shops, grocery stores and dining locations is underway. Joburg Kosher products, first sampled to rave reviews in October at Kosherfest 2010, are produced in New Jersey under supervision of the Orthodox Union. “We are excited to announce that Biltong, the perfect travel food, will also be available Kosher for Passover,” Mr. Libesman said.

Joburg Kosher Boerewors, or ‘Farmer’s Sausage,’ add a new dimension to the gourmet sausage category. They are marinated and seasoned for a juicy and succulent taste experience when grilled, fried in a skillet or broiled. Joburg Kosher Boerewors are not pre-cooked like most other sausages, but are shipped frozen with no nitrates or nitrites, and contain only 280mg of sodium per serving. Great as a center plate entrée, in a roll or in a recipe, Joburg Boerewors are available in Traditional, Garlic and spicy Peri-Peri flavors, in 4-pack/3oz links and 2.5 lb packs. South Africans love “Boeries on the braai (bbq grill)” all year round.

Biltong is a staple in South Africa that is available in stores, butcher shops and roadside stands throughout the country. While kosher beef jerky has been available in the U.S. market, kosher Biltong offers an exciting, new taste experience. Made from premium cut beef, Joburg Kosher Biltong is marinated and seasoned, then slowly dried for days. The result is a savory and satisfying snack or meal that is low in calories, 97 percent fat free, has only 150mg sodium per serving, with no preservatives. Biltong, which requires no refrigeration and is a great travel companion, comes in Traditional, Black Pepper and spicy Peri-Peri flavors. It is available in individual 3oz servings as well as one-pound packs and slabs.

About Joburg Kosher Foods, LLC

David Libesman, the son of a South African butcher, arrived in the USA in 1998. For 11 years he searched high and low for Biltong and Boerewors with the taste and texture that he grew up with. He then decided to make them himself using recipes and techniques perfected over 40 years. The overwhelming response from family and friends led to the creation of Joburg™ Kosher Foods, LLC. The company’s mission is to be the first kosher food manufacturer to make high quality, authentic South African foods widely available through retail shops and foodservice channels throughout the U.S., as well as the Internet. For more information and consumer comments, see the videos at http://www.youtube.com/JoburgKosher.

Rabbi Seth Mandel is Orthodox Union rabbinic coordinator for Joburg Kosher.