In an interview this week with Mishpacha, Rabbi Sholem Fishbane, kashrus administrator at the Chicago Rabbinical Council (cRc) and executive director of the Association of Kashrus Organizations (AKO), an umbrella group of major kosher certifying agencies, is sounding the alarm on today’s “kashrus complacency.” Today’s generation of consumers is so accustomed to having everything out there in a kosher version, he says, that we’ve slowly let down our guard.
Rabbi Fishbane, in his interview with Mishpacha writer Mr. Yosef Herz, says that the consumer has to be being personally educated in matters of kashrus, being on the lookout for areas of concern, and most importantly, standing up and taking responsibility for standards and insisting they be followed.
In a frum supermarket, he says, “notice how it’s a heimishe environment, and therefore in our heads we start creating a conception that everything sold here is one thousand percent okay to eat.”
The mere fact that one is in a “kosher” store, with no clear signage notifying customers of the difference between lettuce with a good hechsher and those without, creates a situation ripe for mistake. “People assume the store itself is a hechsher,” Rabbi Fishbane says, when that is not the case.
“It must be stressed that a heimish store does not equal a hashgachah,” he says.
Addressing simchos and parlor meetings, Rabbi Fishbane sayd, “In most events that we see today, even in the most upstanding communities, the caterer is under hashgachah, but the actual party isn’t. Why is that a problem? Because the caterer is only providing the main food on the menu. But who’s bringing in the sushi chef? Who’s overseeing the bar? Who’s ordering the specialty cookies and desserts? Who’s ensuring the rented keilim and props are kosher and they are being used exclusively for either fleishig or milchig events? That all falls on the party planner. And a party planner’s job is to please his client, to get whatever it takes to placate his clients’ fancy. If he says ‘no, I can’t do that,’ he risks losing his entire business.
“Without a reputable mashgiach — backed by an acceptable kashrus agency — the entire event is prone to pitfalls, and can lead to real treif being served,” Rabbi Fishbane notes. “On the other hand, if there is a mashgiach, party planners who realize that something is wrong can blame it on the fact that the mashigach doesn’t let, so their business is protected.”
“It’s a complete hefker velt out there with the party planners,” Rabbi Tzvi Fischer, rosh havaad of Oregon Kosher, told Mishpacha. Read the full article at Mishpacha.
{Matzav.com}
I always wondered why, in all of Tenaach, a span of 800 years, we never bump into any episode of someone refraining from eating something because of Kashrus.
If you take a look at the story of Manoach in Shoftim, you see the Malochim refused to eat by him.
By Avrohom they did. Very disearning regarding kashroot.
You might have missed this:
ה וַיְמַן לָהֶם הַמֶּלֶךְ דְּבַר-יוֹם בְּיוֹמוֹ, מִפַּת-בַּג הַמֶּלֶךְ וּמִיֵּין מִשְׁתָּיו, וּלְגַדְּלָם, שָׁנִים שָׁלוֹשׁ; וּמִקְצָתָם–יַעַמְדוּ, לִפְנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ. ו וַיְהִי בָהֶם, מִבְּנֵי יְהוּדָה–דָּנִיֵּאל חֲנַנְיָה, מִישָׁאֵל וַעֲזַרְיָה. ז וַיָּשֶׂם לָהֶם שַׂר הַסָּרִיסִים, שֵׁמוֹת; וַיָּשֶׂם לְדָנִיֵּאל בֵּלְטְשַׁאצַּר, וְלַחֲנַנְיָה שַׁדְרַךְ, וּלְמִישָׁאֵל מֵישַׁךְ, וְלַעֲזַרְיָה עֲבֵד נְגוֹ. ח וַיָּשֶׂם דָּנִיֵּאל עַל-לִבּוֹ, אֲשֶׁר לֹא-יִתְגָּאַל בְּפַת-בַּג הַמֶּלֶךְ וּבְיֵין מִשְׁתָּיו; וַיְבַקֵּשׁ מִשַּׂר הַסָּרִיסִים, אֲשֶׁר לֹא יִתְגָּאָל. ט וַיִּתֵּן הָאֱלֹהִים אֶת-דָּנִיֵּאל, לְחֶסֶד וּלְרַחֲמִים, לִפְנֵי, שַׂר הַסָּרִיסִים. י וַיֹּאמֶר שַׂר הַסָּרִיסִים, לְדָנִיֵּאל–יָרֵא אֲנִי אֶת-אֲדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ, אֲשֶׁר מִנָּה אֶת-מַאֲכַלְכֶם וְאֶת-מִשְׁתֵּיכֶם: אֲשֶׁר לָמָּה יִרְאֶה אֶת-פְּנֵיכֶם זֹעֲפִים, מִן-הַיְלָדִים אֲשֶׁר כְּגִילְכֶם, וְחִיַּבְתֶּם אֶת-רֹאשִׁי, לַמֶּלֶךְ. יא וַיֹּאמֶר דָּנִיֵּאל, אֶל-הַמֶּלְצַר–אֲשֶׁר מִנָּה, שַׂר הַסָּרִיסִים, עַל-דָּנִיֵּאל חֲנַנְיָה, מִישָׁאֵל וַעֲזַרְיָה. יב נַס-נָא אֶת-עֲבָדֶיךָ, יָמִים עֲשָׂרָה; וְיִתְּנוּ-לָנוּ מִן-הַזֵּרֹעִים, וְנֹאכְלָה–וּמַיִם וְנִשְׁתֶּה. יג וְיֵרָאוּ לְפָנֶיךָ, מַרְאֵינוּ, וּמַרְאֵה הַיְלָדִים, הָאֹכְלִים אֵת פַּת-בַּג הַמֶּלֶךְ; וְכַאֲשֶׁר תִּרְאֵה, עֲשֵׂה עִם-עֲבָדֶיךָ. יד וַיִּשְׁמַע לָהֶם, לַדָּבָר הַזֶּה; וַיְנַסֵּם, יָמִים עֲשָׂרָה. טו וּמִקְצָת, יָמִים עֲשָׂרָה, נִרְאָה מַרְאֵיהֶם טוֹב, וּבְרִיאֵי בָּשָׂר: מִן-כָּל-הַיְלָדִים–הָאֹכְלִים, אֵת פַּת-בַּג הַמֶּלֶךְ. טז וַיְהִי הַמֶּלְצַר, נֹשֵׂא אֶת-פַּת-בָּגָם, וְיֵין, מִשְׁתֵּיהֶם; וְנֹתֵן לָהֶם, זֵרְעֹנִים.
What about sefer Daniyyel?
What about sefer Daniyyel?
Rabbi Yehuda Shain from Lakewood has been utilizing DISCLOSURES for the past number of years, at all affairs that he is responsible for, including weddings, bar mitzvahas, etc.
The disclosures list every brand item and it’s hashgocha. he does not allow Party planners a free hand, they must comply with his written requirements.
The Disclosures, list the meat and poultry, bakeries, yoshon, bishul yisroel for Sfardim, checked lettuces, etc.
Reb Dovid Feinstein, Z”L asked me not to do any Shabbos, Yom tov affairs if there is a Party Planner involved-reasons are self understood.
For sample disclosures, [email protected]
I hope something will change
As long as you only eat chalav yisroel and paas yisroel, you’ll be fine and go directly to gan Eden. If you ch”v consume any chalav stam or pass palter, you have no chelek in olam haba and you go straight to gehenom.
Shame on posting such garbage as “straight to gei’him’em”
Such thoughts are myopic and mot’zee shem ra on Am Yisrael wjho follow halachah — lih’heter…..
.
If the poster wants to see what the Netziv wrote about his perverted derech..which caused the destruction of the Bais HaMikdash — I have the one essay of the p’seech’tah to Ha’amek Davar with 30 pages of footnotes.
The essay is a Torah Taste of Tolerance –to accept other people’s TORAH view and notr call them a tzeh’du’kee
Based on Sefer HaYashar
Kol Tuv,
Ben Yaakov Moshe
[email protected]
Shame on posting such garbage as “straight to gei’him’em”
Such thoughts are myopic and mot’zee shem ra on Am Yisrael wjho follow halachah — lih’heter…..
.
If the poster wants to see what the Netziv wrote about the poster’s perverted derech “which he was taught”..a derech which caused the destruction of the Bais HaMikdash — I have the one essay of the p’seech’tah to Ha’amek Davar with 30 pages of footnotes.
The kih’neged HaTorah way is — “It is only our way or the highway” This is not Torah.
Torah within halachah is multi-dimentional with different pathways.. but within gih’ray ha’lachah
There are those who eat chalav stam –bih’heter and are only mak’peed to have pas Yisrael during the ah’ser’
es yih’may teshuvah
The essay is a Torah Taste of Tolerance –to accept other people’s TORAH view and not call them a tzeh’du’kee
Based on Sefer HaYashar
Accept others with love and become tolerant of different dih’rach’eem —
This excludes acceptance of deviace movements who do not accept Torah Meen HaShamayim
such as allowing to eat in any dairy restaurant —-
Kol Tuv,
Ben Yaakov Moshe
[email protected]
UPDATED and corrected
Shame on posting such garbage as “straight to gei’him’em”
Such thoughts are myopic and mot’zee shem ra on Am Yisrael wjho follow halachah — lih’heter…..
.
If the poster wants to see what the Netziv wrote about the poster’s perverted derech “which he was taught”..a derech which caused the destruction of the Bais HaMikdash — I have the one essay of the p’seech’tah to Ha’amek Davar with 30 pages of footnotes.
The kih’neged HaTorah way is — “It is only our way or the highway” This is not Torah.
Torah within halachah is multi-dimentional with different pathways.. but within gih’ray ha’lachah
There are those who eat chalav stam –bih’heter and are only mak’peed to have pas Yisrael during the ah’ser’
es yih’may teshuvah
The essay is a Torah Taste of Tolerance –to accept other people’s TORAH view and not call them a tzeh’du’kee
Based on Sefer HaYashar
Accept others with love and become tolerant of different dih’rach’eem —
This excludes acceptance of deviace movements who do not accept Torah Meen HaShamayim
such as allowing to eat in any dairy restaurant —-
Kol Tuv,
Ben Yaakov Moshe
[email protected]