Navigating Through A Sea Of Confusion: Choosing Acceptable Hashgachas
While we shop, before purchasing a particular item we routinely ask ourselves, “Is it kosher?” The prudent kosher consumer will always check the label to confirm whether a kosher symbol appears on the label. However, due to the vast number of kosher agencies that operate throughout the world, sometimes checking labels for kosher symbols can resemble alphabet soup. Today, the number of kosher symbols internationally exceeds 700, and we often find ourselves in a sea of confusion. If a kosher symbol appears on a product label, we might be tempted to tell ourselves, “It must be fine, isn’t it? I am sure it’s all the same”.
What is Kosher Gelatin Revisited
It is well known that a few generations ago the Poskim discussed whether gelatin made from animal bones is kosher, and the general consensus in the United States was that it is not kosher. This article will focus on the more-recent developments regarding this ingredient.
Tracking Down The OU Imposters
It’s Anything But A Symbolic Gesture To Assure That The Famed OU Kosher Symbol Is Not Misused.
The typical kosher consumer picks a coveted food item off the shelf to take a closer look at the label. If he/she sees the familiar Orthodox Union OU symbol, the product has undoubtedly found a home. Over 60 percent of America’s kosher-certified products bear the OU and kosher consumers rely on it as a sign of assurance that the product meets the highest kosher standards. Thus, when a product displaying an unauthorized OU appears in the marketplace, the Orthodox Union responds swiftly and efficiently.
Can You Determine If A Product Is Kosher Just From The Ingredients?
Not a week goes by without us at the OU learning of new Kashrut issues that arise from new developments in the food industry. Food companies are always discovering new ways to make their products better while at the same time lower their production costs. These innovations lead to new methods of production and ingredients, […]
OU Hosts Annual AKO Conference
OU Kosher hosts post-Kosherfest AKO Conference to consider issues facing Kosher Organizations in their daily work.
Compatibility
An age-old adage declares, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” The conventional approach to understanding the profundity of this truism is that, contrary to popular belief, life in our modern-day society resembles the life of our ancestors far more than it differs from it. Lessons gleaned from history give direction on how to proceed in the future. The Ramban called this an “inyan gadol” – a matter of paramount importance – when he commented (Bereishis 12:6): Kol ma she’ira la’avos, siman labanim, “Everything that transpired in the lives of the Patriarchs is a portent for their descendants.” The Torah is the embodiment of this reality. Its laws are as contemporary as they are timeless, and its historical accounts relating the events of thousands of years ago are ever relevant to the here and now. Times may be different, but life’s challenges and appropriate responses to those challenges, as set forth by the Torah, remain the same.
Kosher Department Leader Presents Senator Lieberman With Journal Dedicated To Memory Of His Mother
Rabbi Menachem Genack, Chief Executive Officer of the Orthodox Union Kashrut (Kosher) Department, presented Senator Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) with a copy of the 21st and latest issue of the Department’s highly regarded journal, Mesorah. The issue is dedicated to Senator Lieberman’s mother, Marsha, who died in June.
Special Productions – Special Procedures
For many kosher agencies, handling regular productions is…regular. Once an organization has a system in place for handling plant inspections, ingredient substitutions, label changes, new equipment and production adjustments, the key is simply to maintain the status quo. That is, until a plant wishes to do a “special production”.
Rabbi Moshe Elefant, COO OF OU Kosher, To Be Featured Speaker At Kosherfest, November 16
Coping with Modern Day Challenges of Kosher Food Production:
Rabbi Moshe Elefant, Chief Operating Officer of the Orthodox Union Kosher Division, will be a featured speaker at the Kosherfest show, which will be held Tuesday, November 15 and Wednesday, November 16 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City.
OU Launches Universal Kosher Database (UKD)
We are pleased to announce that the Universal Kosher Database (UKD), a new and powerful tool, is now available to all OU certified companies. We are certain that this groundbreaking enhancement will simplify our companies’ kosher programs and provide them with important options that were not previously available. The UKD contains a record of tens of […]