Kashrut Agencies And The Fight Against The Tsedek Hechsher – "What Happens In Postville Stays In Postville"

Avi Frier writes in this week's Florida Jewish News:

…In my opinion, the answer is simple, and you've heard me say it before: It's all about the money.

When a Torah observant couple sits down to dinner at a kosher restaurant, they have the right to expect that every aspect of their experience be within the bounds of Torah law and values, from the food they eat to the music they hear to the attire of their waitress. To the customers of these establishments, anything not conforming to halachic norms would be a negative reflection on both the establishment and the Kashrut agency.

So in effect, the agencies can't afford NOT to enforce these requirements on their restaurants and caterers. Failure to do so would cause them to lose the public's trust, which would ultimately result in loss of business for the agencies.

But while restaurants and caterers may be the bread and butter of the Kashrut industry, the large manufacturers are their champagne and steak. To lose a restaurant's business would amount to pocket change compared to losing a chocolate manufacturer, beverage bottler, or meat packer.

And since the public doesn't actually see what goes on behind the scenes at these plants, the popular slogan of Sin City manages to apply itself to these manufacturers: “What happens in Postville stays in Postville.”

But not for long.

Thanks to The Forward and other Jewish publications, the public is now very much aware of the goings on at these facilities. And it is up to each and every one of us to let the Kashrut agencies know that preventing the implementation of a Tsedek Hekhsher would be just as much a violation of our trust as offering certification to the local Hooters.…

Comments

[Harold]

Actualy, offering a certification to the local Hooters might not be a bad idea. lol

[D]

"while restaurants and caterers may be the bread and butter of the Kashrut industry, the large manufacturers are their champagne and steak."

Only time will tell what the steak/sizzle ratio is for the Tzedek Hekhsher idea.

Seriously, though, has R. Morris Alan or anyone else ever explicated the halachic imperatives involved here? And by "halachic imperatives" I mean citations of S"A and poskim on the matter; not just talking points copied-and-pasted from latter-day liberal advocacy groups.

Also, Shmarya, the embedded hot-link to Answers.com is a bit annoying. Attempts to highlight text are greeted with those diabolical pop-up boxes offering me reams of information on the meaning of "is" and the like. Can we tone that down a bit? TIA

[Isn't Kashrus Just Great?]

Why doesn't the OU just create another division to certify the 'Tzedek' aspects, just like they did for the Gluten Free market?