Why the world's best known brands choose the OU for Kosher certification

Shaimos A Brand Name That Has Withstood Time

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By: Rabbi Yisroel Bendelstein

“And whatever Adam called each living creature remained its name forever.” In an age confounded by consolidations and mergers, this verse from the second chapter of the Book of Genesis is a goal all companies can only hope to achieve. Of course, OU kosher certification and high quality control are all proven ways of maximizing the marketability of a product, but brand name recognition too is as important a gauge as any in selling a product. It is no secret that consumers tend to flock to the “household” names they are most familiar with.The big question is if any of these names can make it through another merger, let alone last forever.

So far in the history of the world one individual, an institution all by himself, was granted a unique privilege to assign names that would withstand the test of time. This individual was Adam — the first man to inhabit this world. God endowed Adam with this right by bringing before him all creatures on the face of the earth to name. So Adam called a bird-bird, lion-lion, giraffe-giraffe, whale-whale, and so on and so forth.These creatures that were branded by Adam have remarkably retained their original names to this very day.

Roughly a year ago, a company approached the OU for kosher certification of its product.The brand name of this product prides itself in matching Adam’s feat for being around since time immemorial.The product is called “Shaimos.” Over the millennia this product’s name has never changed and remains to this very day. So what exactly is this “Shaimos” product? Literally, the term in Hebrew means “Names.” More specifically, it refers to anything that contains the sanctity of God’s name.This includes all sacred texts, writings and objects. Jewish tradition prohibits old and worn out sacred texts (including photocopies) to simply be disposed of in the garbage. On the contrary, they must be accorded a dignified burial in a cemetery. A single Jewish household can collect a substantial amount of these holy materials throughout the year, and especially before the Passover holiday when the house is cleaned and scoured thoroughly, the household seeks to properly dispose of them.

As the garbage is not an option, these sacred articles that have now accumulated with considerable weight have traditionally been hauled to a single truck centrally located in town, which will make the trip to the Jewish cemetery.The lugging out of the house, into the car and onto the truck can be a most exhausting exercise.

Enter Mr. Benny Goldstein, a Jewish scribe quite familiar with this dilemma, to invent his brainchild — the “Shaimos Box.” It is a box made of strong corrugated material measuring 12” x 7” x 15” that can hold up to 20 pounds of the sacred articles, and that can be bought in any Judaica store throughout the United States.When full, the box is mailed to a pre-addressed burial site and handled by OU rabbinic field representatives to ensure a kosher or proper interment.

When pursuing OU certification Mr. Goldstein commented,“The OU is the best for certifying products. I wanted the best. It’s as simple as that.” Rabbi Moshe Elefant, Executive Rabbinic Coordinator, explained the deeper meaning behind the OU acceding to Mr. Goldstein’s request declaring,“The OU is concerned with all aspects of Jewish life.” Clearly the nature of the Shaimos product is wholly different from any of the other 400,000 food and other products the OU certifies. Nevertheless, Rabbi Elefant continued,“We see the Shaimos Box as an opportunity to extend our expertise to assist the community in all of its needs.”

Additionally, the Shaimos product underscores a central motif in Judaism — that as vital as the food we eat are the sacred writings and rituals that nourish our souls. According to Jewish belief, the main purpose of life is to facilitate the spiritual nourishment of the soul so that it may be elevated and reach its highest potential in this world and the next.Therefore, anything that assists the soul in its mission through life in this world must have a dignified burial.

Rabbi Eliyahu Safran, Senior Rabbinic Coordinator, put it this way:“The body serves as the vehicle for the soul’s sojourn in this world, and it is for this reason that we accord it all the dignity and respect that we do in the same way in which we ‘dispose’ of the body, even though we know that ultimately the body simply decomposes. So too, the sacred texts allow for the soul’s development and enhancement; therefore, they too are accorded the same great respect in the manner of their disposal, even if they too ultimately disintegrate.”

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