We frequently focus on the intricacies of food production, and with good reason. Constantly changing technology impacts heavily on kashrus supervision. Only by staying up to date can a kashrus agency hope to maintain first-grade standards of hashgachah.
Often the consumer does not have a notion of the complexity of supervision. Seeing the final product on the shelf and perhaps even examining the ingredients, it all looks relatively simple. "What can be wrong with . . ." is a frequent refrain. Yet we who have made kosher supervision our life know that, indeed, today a lot can go wrong.
Fatty acids are a good illustration of the intricate world of kashrus supervision. Say the word "fat," and many people take a step back. Studies have demonstrated that too much fat in the diet can lead to serious health consequences, and millions of Americans have decreased the fat in their diet in order to stay healthy and look good.
While it is important to maintain our health, in fulfillment of the Torah dictum venishmartem me'od l'nafshoseichem, "you must diligently watch your souls" (Deuteronomy 4:15), our bodies must intake a certain percentage of fat to function properly. Fats are our fuel; they give us energy. They help insulate our nerves, keep our body temperature at proper levels, and ease the absorption of the vitamins in food. Without fat in our diet, we would wear down very quickly. The concern is not so much general ingestion of fat, but the type of fat and the quantity (as a percentage of total calories).
Jews have an additional concern: whether the fat is kosher, and therefore suitable for our body and spirit. What are the different kinds of fat, and what are the kashrus challenges faced in producing fatty acids?
Fats and oils are composed primarily of fatty acids and glycerol. Three fatty acid molecules combine with one molecule of glycerol, and are thus termed triglycerides.
There are several categories of fat. Unsaturated fats are divided into monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. Monounsaturated fats – olive, canola, and peanut oils being the most prominent – are considered the healthiest of the fat varieties. These fats serve to reduce the levels of LDL, the unhealthy cholesterol in the body. Polyunsaturated fats are also regarded as healthy. These include safflower oil, corn oil, soybean oil, and sesame oil.
Unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature, as opposed to the less healthy saturated fats, which are solid. Saturated fats derive either from animal or plant sources, and include butter, margarine, vegetable shortening, and lard.
Now for fatty acids. You will not likely see the words "fatty acids" on an ingredient label, but you will see terms such as stearic acid, myristic acid, and palmitic acid, which are each fatty acids. You will also see terms such as calcium stearate and magnesium stearate, which are chemicals produced using fatty acids. These are among the basics of many foods we eat. One fatty acid is differentiated from another by the positioning of the carbon and hydrogen atoms in its molecular structure.
Many readers will be familiar with the term "hydrogenated" oil, a common ingredient in foods such as cookies, icing, and chocolate coating. Hydrogenated oil is liquid fat that has been solidified at room temperature by the addition of hydrogen. When hydrogenation occurs, the unsaturated fatty acids acquire some characteristics of saturated fatty acids. These are termed trans fatty acids. Saturated fats are considered generally unhealthy, as are trans fatty acids.
Among the fatty acids are a group called essential fatty acids. These are fats that our bodies need because they contribute to oxidation, which is how our body burns food to supply the fuel for it to function. However, our body does not produce essential fatty acids on its own; they must be acquired nutritionally.The two primary essential fatty acids are linoleic acid and alpha linolenic acid, both polyunsaturated.
The following fatty acids can be directly produced only from a vegetable source: caproic acid, capric acid, caprylic acid, lauric acid, and ricinoleic acid. The following can be directly produced from both animal and vegetable sources: palmitic acid, myristic acid, stearic acid, and oleic acid. In granting a hechsher, the fact that these fatty acids can originate in a non-kosher source must be kept in mind.
As we said, fats are mostly composed of fatty acids and glycerin, plus some additional byproducts. The fatty acids and glycerol are separated from one another by a process called splitting. In this process, the only kashrus issue concerns the equipment. We must make sure that it has not been used for non-kosher oil or fat; if it has, it must be kosherized.
After splitting the acids and glycerol, we are left with mixed fatty acids, that is, a combination of acids that must be further divided so that each fatty acid stands on its own. This latter process is called fractionation, and can be done either by a dry or wet method. If a dry process is used, there are no kashrus problems. However, there are kashrus issues that arise with wet fractionation. An example of wet fractionation occurs with palm oil. Sodium decyl sulphate (SDS) or sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS) is added to the fatty acid mixture. The purpose of the SDS and SLS is to allow the palm oil to mix with water. The solution is heated to 60°C (140°H) and then cooled. When the temperature reaches 50°C (122°H), all the fatty acids except the oleic crystallize. When the temperature reaches 7°C (45°H), the oleic acid finally crystallizes.
The SDS and SLS may come from a non-kosher source and must be supervised. Therefore, even in the case where the oleic acid comes from a kosher source such as palm oil, special care must be taken to insure the kashrus of the sulphate additives.
Of course it is easiest to supervise a plant where no animal oils are produced. By contrast, plants that produce both animal and vegetable oils must be closely supervised to insure complete segregation of kosher and non-kosher.
We can employ one of two methods to insure the kashrus of oil and fat. The first way is to completely and permanently segregate the kosher and non-kosher parts of the facility. This requires intensive initial effort on the part of the company, assisted by the expertise of the kosher certifying agency to guarantee that the systems are truly separate. After the initial setup, the local mashgiach must monitor the facility on a regular basis to insure that no contamination of the kosher section takes place. His responsibilities include monitoring the equipment, with particular attention paid to the piping that runs to and from the equipment. Because of the concurrent presence of non-kosher fatty acids, he must be vigilant that only kosher products are put through the system.
The alternative is to use the same equipment for kosher and non-kosher runs. Companies prefer this method, since it is more economical. However, from the standpoint of kashrus, this arrangement can pose numerous difficulties. In order to make the equipment suitable for a kosher run, it must be kosherized. First it must be thoroughly cleaned, so that all non-kosher residue is removed. This is a very difficult and expensive undertaking.
The cleaning removes all the visible and tangible non-kosher oil or fat. However, we must also extract the non-kosher taste that has been absorbed into the equipment, since the taste is not removed by the surface cleaning. To accomplish this, the equipment is first kept idle for twenty-four hours, so that the non-kosher taste absorbed in it becomes pagum (inedible). Then the equipment must be filled entirely with water and brought to a rolling boil, a process that extracts the absorbed taste. Companies are often reluctant to subject their equipment to this procedure, since the water and energy required are immense. The time involved in leaving the equipment idle for a day and in kashering it is an economic burden. Yet there can be no compromise when it comes to kashrus. The OK mashgichim are insistent that the standards for proper kosherizing are kept.
Another leniency is to use oil rather than water for kashering. Oil companies prefer not to use water on their machinery. Instead, a run of vegetable oil is made between the non-kosher and kosher productions. That run is not sold as kosher, but serves as a kashering agent. We have noted in the past that the proper method of kashering is with boiling water (See "The Intricacies of Chocolate Production," October 1997), a standard to which the OK adheres.
We should note that there are supervision agencies who are extremely particular and prefer to certify facilities that produce only vegetable oil. Among these is the Eida Hachareidis of Jerusalem.
The importance of extensive knowledge of developments in food production is amply demonstrated by the complexities of fatty acids supervision. The OK commits itself once again to implementing the strictest standards of kosher certification, as we look forward to the day when oil (olive) will form an integral part of the Temple service, in the days of Mashiach.