OU Kosher Staff

Trade Shows: Meet the OU Representatives

OU Representatives will be more than glad to meet you at the trade shows. Please stop by! Natural Products Expo West Show March 3-7, 2020 Anaheim Convention Center 800 West Katella Avenue Anaheim, CA 92802 USA Winter Fancy Food Show Jan 19 – 21, 2020 Moscone Center, San Francisco, CA Summer Fancy Food Show June […]

The Spiritual Significance of Shemittah

by Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb Why would the Torah dictate such a challenging set of laws, requiring that landowners relinquish their land and neither plant nor reap for an entire year? Many great sages have asked this question and have offered a variety of answers. The Rambam offers two very different reasons for shemittah. Firstly, that shemittah is […]

To Largest Group Ever, ASK OU 12 Provides Knowledge From Orthodox Union Experts On Adapting Kashrus Halacha To Modern Food Production

70 participants from ASK OU 12 at the OU’s New York City headquarters. Seated foreground from left: Senior Educational Rabbinic Coordinator Rabbi Yosef Grossman; OU Executive Vice President Allen Fagin; and OU Kosher CEO Rabbi Menachem Genack. There is an annual cycle in Judaism in which season follows season, holiday follows holiday, observances follow observances, and of […]

Halachos of the Hive

A discussion of the differences between honey and royal jelly in regards to Kosher.

OU Kosher’s Primer For Upcoming Shemittah Year

“The laws governing the shemittah year were designed to strengthen the Jewish people’s trust in Hashem and to serve as a reminder that as important as our efforts are, ultimately everything comes from above.  It is an opportunity, every seven years, to witness the manifestation of Hashem’s presence in the world.” As we are little […]

The OU: Mastering the Challenges of Producing Kosher Wine

Over the last ten years there has been a veritable explosion in the certification of kosher wine. Kosher wine is now produced on every continent and in most of the world’s premier wine regions. While the manufacture and handling of kosher wines (and grape juice) involves certain unique challenges, with the OU’s experience and expertise these have been met and overcome, providing consumers an ever- increasing variety of kosher wine products.

Harry H. Beren ASK OU Community Kashrut Program

RIETS students gather around OU Kosher CEO Rabbi Menachem Genack, seated at center, together with Rabbi Yaakov Luban, standing to his near right,and Rabbi Dov Schreier, far right. The Orthodox Union’s Kosher Division recently held its annual seminar for advanced semicha (ordination) students at RIETS, the rabbinical seminary of Yeshiva University. The Harry H. Beren ASK OU Kashrut Program at RIETS included presentations from senior […]

A Philadelphia Story: ASK OU Outreach and First Seder Presentation in Bala Cynwyd

From left: Rabbi Chaim Loike, OU rabbinic coordinator and bird expert; Rabbi Yitzchok Friedman, OU rabbinic field representative in MD and PA; Rabbi Uri Greenspan, Rosh Yeshivah, First Seder Bais Medrash; Rabbi Yosef Grossman, OU senior educational rabbinic coordinator; and Rabbi Avraham Shmidman of the Lower Merion Synagogue. In the spirit of the City of […]

OU KOSHER Honors Terry Grillo of Firmenich for 20 Years of Dedicated Service

On May 21 the OU recognized Terry Grillo, Regulatory Specialist at Firmenich, upon the occasion of her retirement after more than 20 years of dedicated service to the Orthodox Union kosher program. Firmenich is one of the global leaders in the flavor industry. Left to right: Elisa Berger, Flavor Analyst and Administrative Assistant to Rabbi […]

Pfizer Inc. Receives Kosher Certification for Elelyso™ (taliglucerase alfa) for Injection, For the Treatment of Type 1 Gaucher Disease, Most Frequently Found Among Ashkenazi Jews

Treatment for rare inherited lysosomal storage disorder is the first prescription medication to receive kosher certification from the Orthodox Union Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) today announced that the Orthodox Union (OU) has granted kosher certification to ELELYSO™ (taliglucerase alfa) for injection, an enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) for the long-term treatment of adults with a confirmed diagnosis […]