by Rabbi Don Yoel Levy

Over the years, we have written about numerous aspects of kosher supervision. We have discussed the monitoring of manufacturing facilities, how to apply for kosher certification, the particulars of supervising specific plants, ingredients — the parts that come together to make a kosher product.

But we have never discussed what happens when something goes wrong. None of us likes to admit making a mistake. The burden on a kosher supervision agency is even greater, because we know that we carry the burden of safeguarding G-d’s law. When we err, there is the possibility that thousands of people are affected. And yet, kashrus agencies are made up of human beings. Even given the enormous technological sophistication of the O.K. Labs today, human beings have the ultimate responsibility here, as they do at other kashrus agencies. And human beings are not perfect. How does the O.K. respond when something goes wrong in its kosher program?

Broadly speaking, there are two types of mistakes that occur in kashrus. Errors can originate at the supervision agency or at the manufacturer. Within each categories there are different kinds of mistakes. For example, at the company level, an oversight may occur in production and an unapproved ingredient is mistakenly added to a product. Or the error may occur after production, in packaging. To illustrate, occasionally we come across an advertisement stating that a product labeled pareve should have been labeled dairy. Here the company produced the item correctly, with the mistake occurring after production. (Somewhat different is the unauthorized use of a kosher symbol by a company seeking to capitalize on the kosher market for a non-kosher product. This goes beyond error to misrepresentation, and is beyond the scope of the present article.)

We can divide the subject of mistakes into three categories: Prevention, Discovery, and Correction.

Prevention

At the O.K., our goal is perfection; ideally we would prefer never blunder. Yet living in the real world, mistakes do occur, as they most certainly do with other agencies. Supervision organizations that are not afraid to issue kashrus alerts to the public are to be commended. What should concern us are agencies that apparently never commit an error.

Still, a good supervision agency takes initial steps to minimize the potential for error. As in other aspects of life, there is no substitute for good preparation. The steps we take include comprehensive inspection and monitoring of facilities, educating companies concerning the rules that govern kosher production, and commitment to writing the guidelines that will govern corrective action.

The latter is covered in the contract agreement between the supervision agency and the company. When the O.K. draws a contract, it includes the mechanism for handling mistakes.

My father, Rabbi Berel Levy, z’l, was once asked why we would continue to supervise a company that makes a mistake. My father replied that in all likelihood the man’s wife had, at some time during their marriage, made a kashrus mistake in the kitchen, and yet he had not divorced her. The O.K. recognizes that we live in an imperfect world. As long as we are certain about the company’s integrity, we will work with it to rectify the problem.

Discovery

How does a kashrus agency discover that a mistake has occurred? Generally discovery comes about in one of three ways: 1) a Rabbinic Coordinator in our central office notes that something is amiss; 2) the rabbi monitoring the facility in question finds the mistake; 3) a consumer calls to report an improperly labeled product. For example, he/she finds a package labeled with a simple O.K., yet there are dairy ingredients in the item.

(We are very grateful to consumers who take the time to report any suspicions. Often it turns out that there is no problem, but we ask consumers to keep a vigilant eye when they shop. When a consumer calls us to report an item that may be mislabeled, we request that he or she forward the package to us at our expense, so that we can act upon it.)

Once we confirm that a mistake has been made, the mechanism for correction is activated.

Correction

What happens when we find a problem? Our primary goal is to protect the buying public. When a mistake is made, whether the error is the fault of the O.K. or of the food company, we immediately take all necessary steps to alert those who may be affected. In the case of a product that product is available at the retail level, we notify the public that a mistake has been made. Notification generally is accomplished by advertisement in one or more popular Jewish newspapers. We also post such alerts on our website, at “Kosher Alerts.” Other kosher-oriented sites, such as kashrut.com, pick up these alerts. We also arrange for notices to be posted in synagogues.

Simultaneously we are in contact with the food company to make arrangements for withdrawal of the offending item from the market. Often the integrity of a company can be measured by its reaction to a situation of this nature.

Recently a consumer E-mailed us concerning a Kraft product. The consumer had been in the hospital and was served Jell-O Strawberry Gelatin that carried an O.K. symbol on the label and yet contained animal gelatin. Aware that no major kashrus agency in the U.S. accepts gelatin from a non-kosher source in its products, the consumer sensed that the product was mislabeled.

Kraft products have been O.K.-certified for many years, and the relationship between our two companies is excellent. Upon receiving the package from the consumer, we immediately went to work with Kraft to recall the product. I am pleased to report that we received full-fledged cooperation from Kraft.

At the time this incident unfolded, I was at home recuperating from an illness. Working via phone and E-mail, we set up a conference call with top Kraft personnel. Dana Coleman, who is Kraft’s Quality Assurance Manager, was of invaluable assistance as we ironed out a solution.

On Wednesday, Sept. 14, Kraft issued an alert to all personnel dealing with foodservice items. (Foodservice refers to items sold to hospitals, used on airlines, and other such markets rather than retail stores.) The memo stated: “A Quality Defect Alert has been issued for foodservice 3.5 oz. Jell-O Strawberry Gelatin. Due to a printing error, the foil lid contains the ‘Circle K Pareve’ kosher symbol . . . Foodservice Distributors should be instructed to dispose of the product . . . Your immediate action is required to complete the following actions by 1:30 p.m., C.D.T., Friday, September 17.”

By the target date, the product was completely withdrawn from the market. In the space of four days, the problem had been solved. This alacrity demonstrates Kraft’s commitment to its kosher program and to the kosher consumer, and I am happy to acknowledge Kraft’s willingness to move mountains in this regard.

The Jell-O case is a perfect example of where you, the consumer, plays a role in maintaining kashrus standards. You are an important line of defense, and we ask again that you report any kashrus concerns to us.

We pray that the time will come, speedily and in our days, when Mashiach will arrive and we will eat, with perfect confidence in its kashrus, from the Leviathan fish.

Default. A party to this Agreement will be in Default hereunder if: (b) with respect to Client, Client breaches any of the Kashrus or other material quality control obligations under this Agreement.

Effect of Default. If Client is in Default pursuant to Paragraph 9(b) of this Agreement (regarding violations of Client’s Kashrus or other material quality control obligations), Client will immediately stop marketing, selling or distributing the applicable Certified Product(s) in any wrapper, container or packaging or using any labels bearing the Trademark or any other form of O.K. Labs’ certification. O.K. Labs may, in its sole judgment and with all of its expenses paid by Client, direct Client to correct any such Defaults (if reasonably curable by Client) by immediately undertaking one or more of the following measures: (i) kosherization of the affected equipment in the plant under Rabbinic supervision; (ii) increased supervision by O.K. Labs for a probationary period deemed proper by O.K. Labs; or (iii) removal of unapproved raw materials or ingredients from Client’s facilities. If, in O.K. Labs’ sole judgment, Client is unable or unwilling to immediately undertake such measures to O.K. Labs’ satisfaction, O.K. Labs may terminate this Agreement and Client’s right to use the Trademark hereunder immediately upon written notice to Client.