By Rabbi Don Levy
Elul, the last month before Rosh Hashonoh and Yom Kippur, is when we reflect on the past year to find what needs to be rectified or improved in preparation for the coming year.
Much has been happening at OK Labs during the past year, and now is the time to reflect on some of these developments.
This year we undertook the major task of rectifying the list known as ³Group One," which is supposed to be a list of ingredients generally recognized as kosher and not requiring supervision. There is an urgent need for such a list, as long as it is kept accurate and up-to-date. However, in a previous article we have shown how the present list is deficient and misleading - basically no more than a sales pitch to attract new clients among food manufacturers.
The harm this causes is obvious:
Originally, the kashrus agencies agreed to correct this situation, even appointing a committee to oversee this. Unfortunately, no progress seems to have been made. This problem is so pressing that we respectfully urge all our colleagues in kashrus certification to bring it to a resolution without delay
To rectify the situation properly, it is essential for every kashrus agency to keep track of all ingredients used in products it certifies. At OK Labs, for example, our state-of-the-art computer system keeps track of all ingredients used in all companies whose products we certify. If any ingredient becomes questionable, we can immediately zero in on products we certify anywhere in the world that have this ingredient, and have it removed throughout the global OK Labs system.
Rabbi Eliezer Teitelbaum, one of OK Labs' senior Rabbinic coordinators, discovered that gum base, one of the main ingredients of chewing gum, has serious kashrus problems.
The gum base is produced from two petrochemicals (both in present Group One - see above). It also contains an emulsifier that can be made from either animal fat or vegetable oil and other chemicals.
The same equipment is used for products used in non-food applications, using animal fat, which is made unpalatable by addition of other chemicals. Between production of different products, most of the equipment cannot be cleaned and the considerable residue left from a previous run can become mixed into food-grade products, once again becoming palatable.
Also the food-grade emulsifier comes in bulk, and until now has not been controlled at a level that meets our standards.
Some have claimed that, despite these problems, it can still be permitted. However, prominent Rabbinical authorities disagree and consider the problems serious enough to refrain from using it under present conditions.
Astute consumers have already noticed that Paskesz chewing gum produced in Europe does NOT carry the OK symbol at present, due to our reluctance to certify the questionable ingredient.
We hope to return to this subject in the future.
Whey is the liquid left after cheese solids have been separated from milk. According to the Halacha, the whey left from production of hard cheese - even non-kosher - is permitted, on condition that the whey is not cooked together with the cheese.
However, we discovered that many cheese factories across the United States use whey that is cooked together with cheese. OK Labs was the first kashrus agency to find a solution for this problem, and other major kashrus agencies are starting to follow our lead.
Stearates - including magnesium stearate and calcium stearate - are used in candies, dried fruits, spices, and tablets including vitamins. Until now, the stearates have been produced on non-kosher equipment that had to be kosherized. Unfortunately, the kosherization process left much to be desired, and we have had to rely on various Halachic leniencies to permit their use, meaning that stearates available to the kosher market have not been at the highest level of kashrus - ³kosher lim'hadrin."
OK Labs is happy to announce that we now certify two Far Eastern companies - Stabilchem and Sunace - that produce stearate that is 100% kosher lim'hadrin. We hope all kashrus agencies will raise their standards by insisting that only these stearates be used, thereby providing the consumer with 100% kosher products.
Who knows? Maybe this will start a trend...
In an excellent article, Rabbi Avrohom I. Juravel, one of OK Labs' rabbinic coordinators, demonstrated how Kosher for Passover medicine lists until now have not been compiled in a professional matter.
For the benefit of the kosher consumer, who may have no choice but to rely on such lists, we hope his article will have the effect of ensuring a more professional approach in compiling such lists in the future.
In one article this year, we pointed out the need to kosherize food-production equipment (used with heat) at 212ƒ Fahrenheit, as required by the Halacha, and how it is actually possible to do so.
Some felt our words were too sharp. We take this opportunity to apologize for the sharp tone.
Each of us in our specific field is working towards the ultimate redemption through Mashiach. Here at OK Labs, we pray to G-d to help us in our efforts to upgrade the observance of kashrus worldwide. May this merit speedily bring Mashiach, as we say in our High Holiday prayers: ³Before you request, I will answer; while they still speak [in prayer], I will hear and immediately respond"!
We extend to our readers and the kosher consumer public, among the entire Jewish people everywhere, our best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.