Author Archives: Admin

Kosher and Organic

Kosher and Organic

Now You Can Have Your Organic Cake and Eat it Too…Thanks to STAR-K!

Once upon a time, organic produce and processed foods were found only in health food stores. Today, not only can you walk into most any mainstream grocery store and find a variety of organically certified foods, you can find them in stores catering to the most discriminating kosher consumer, as well. The rapidly, rising global demand for kosher products bearing a trusted, recognizable kosher logo now parallels that of labeled certified organic products. The two intersecting trends have given rise to a flourishing new specialty food category, kosher organic, which meets both the strict requirements of Jewish dietary laws and the USDA National Organic Program specifications. The major impact on sales of these doubly certified products is reflected in Mintel International’s 2008 research data; both “kosher” and “organic” were amongst the top ten claims for new products.

The term […]

Personal Stories: Becoming Kosher

Personal Stories: Becoming Kosher

If WE Can Do It, So Can You!!
Naomi Lazerow

I was raised in a home where I was told, “you’re Jewish.” That was the extent of my Jewish education. On the Jewish holidays, we went to my grandmother’s and ate the appropriate foods. On Passover we ate matzah but didn’t have a seder. My mother, a widow with four small children – my three younger brothers and me – lived in a non-Jewish neighborhood in Baltimore. We stood out as different, even though we didn’t really know what made us different. My husband Carl was raised in a very assimilated family and attended a large Reform Temple. Needless to say, when we married, we never would have predicted we’d have a kosher home some day.

Why Eat Kosher?

Why Eat Kosher?

Adapted from: On Judaism: Conversations on being Jewish in Today’s World, by Rabbi Emanuel Feldman, pages 219-236. With permission from Artscroll/Mesorah Publications, Ltd.

From the first man and woman we learn about the significance of eating. Adam and Eve were given simple, clear instructions. As guardians of the Garden of Eden they were permitted to taste everything in the Garden. There was only one restriction: they could not eat from one particular tree. If they did, they would die. Isn’t it curious that the Creator’s first conversation with Adam and Eve focuses on the do’s and don’t about food. Superficially, there is nothing about these instructions that strikes one as having implications for eternity or immortality. Just – this you may eat, that you must avoid.

How to Make a Home Kosher

How to Make a Home Kosher

Healthy food choices and dieting are 21st century buzzwords. It seems that more than ever people are making positive dietary changes. For thousands of years, Judaism has offered a dietary blueprint. Not only does the Torah guide us in our food choices, it commands us to separate dairy and meat, and wait a customary length of time between eating meat and dairy dishes. Today, we find Jews of all ages and backgrounds with a growing interest in kashrus and kosher homemaking. For first-hand accounts of people who have kashered their homes click here.

Electronic Letters of Certification Available

Electronic Letters of Certification Available

08 | 15 | 2013

In keeping with Star-K’s commitment to providing prompt, efficient service, Star-K companies will now have the option of receiving their Letter of Certification (LOC) electronically. This enhancement is especially useful for companies that send multiple LOC’s to each of their customers. For example, rather than faxing a five-page LOC to a long list of customers, Star-K companies will be only a click away from electronic LOC distribution. All their customers can receive the data they need in seconds.

Kosher 101

Kosher 101

Definitions
The Jewish religion incorporates within its tenets a regimen of dietary laws. These laws determine which food is acceptable and in conformity with Jewish Law. The word kosher is an adaptation of the Hebrew word meaning fit or proper. It refers to foodstuffs that meet the dietary requirements of Jewish Law.

Acceptability and Service

Acceptability and Service

How does one determine the level of acceptability of a certification?

The best way to begin is by asking your customers, distributors, or companies selling products similar to yours, about their experiences with a particular certification.

Expertise and Knowledge

Expertise and Knowledge

It is also imperative that you make inquiries regarding the level of expertise and knowledge that the various agencies have about your particular industry. For example, if you are producing a food chemical such as citric acid or an amino acid, be sure that the Rabbi making the initial plant visit is familiar with industrial fermentations. Otherwise, his lack of understanding will almost certainly interfere with a smooth trouble-free certification.

Negotiating Terms & Fees

Negotiating Terms & Fees

Negotiating terms
One issue which may not be so obvious when first negotiating terms of kosher certification, but may be a very serious concern later on, is your need to know in advance if your raw ingredient suppliers will require kosher certification. If they do, will their present certification which they may already have, be acceptable? Although in most instances reputable agencies accept the certifications of other reputable agencies, there are a disturbing number of exceptions to this rule.

Determining the right agency for your needs

Determining the right agency for your needs

How do you go about selecting the right kosher certification that will satisfy your company’s particular needs?
Unless you are a local retail establishment whose kosher certification needs are best satisfied by the local rabbinical council, you are about to undergo a bewildering journey of trying to compare the merits of several different certifications. All kosher certification organizations are not identical!

Electronic Letters of Certification Available

Electronic Letters of Certification Available

In keeping with Star-K’s commitment to providing prompt, efficient service, Star-K companies will now have the option of receiving their Letter of Certification (LOC) electronically. This enhancement is especially useful for companies that send multiple LOC’s to each of their customers. For example, rather than faxing a five-page LOC to a long list of customers, Star-K companies will be only a click away from electronic LOC distribution. All their customers can receive the data they need in seconds.

Furthermore, because the LOC is in a “read only” Adobe file, security is assured. (Adobe Acrobat Reader is a commonly used program, easily downloaded from the internet.) An electronic LOC helps maintain the integrity of important information such as, “kosher for Passover” certification, or “when bearing the Star-K symbol”. This is most beneficial for kosher certification agencies.

This most recent change represents Star-K’s ongoing effort to maintain a state-of-the-art computer system in order to […]

Bundling Audits

Bundling Audits

05 | 22 | 2012

Bob Vosburgh, Jeff Wells and Alyssa Haak

It’s tough enough getting certified on a single attribute, much less three. But Hain-Celestial Group’s WestSoy product line was able to gain organic, kosher and non-GMO certification in record time thanks to the emergence of multiple audit programs that streamline the verification process.

STAR-K and BASF

STAR-K and BASF

08 | 02 | 2007

An article that appeared in Euroscope Magazine – for BASF employees in Europe [No. 2/2007]. The essay discusses the STAR-K Kosher certification program at numerous BASF facilities worldwide.

To read the full article, click here.

STAR-K OPENS NEW ONLINE INTERACTIVE VIRTUAL KOSHER UNIVERSITY

STAR-K OPENS NEW ONLINE INTERACTIVE VIRTUAL KOSHER UNIVERSITY

02 | 01 | 2006

Those who are clueless but curious about kosher, have the opportunity to access the
only formal, online, interactive introductory classes about kosher on the web. Star-K’s
Virtual Kosher University will allow the kosher novice to learn the basics from Star-K’s
expert Kashrus Administrators—whether they live in Calabasas, California, or Caracas,
Venezuela! Regardless of one’s schedule, the world of kosher is now open as never before,
at one’s own pace, in the comfort of one’s own home.

STAR-K’S SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM LIGHTS UP THE SHIDDUCH WORLD

STAR-K’S SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM LIGHTS UP THE SHIDDUCH WORLD

08 | 01 | 2005

Please Note : Effective March 2011 this program has been discontinued.

Long before the news of the first official “Star-K engagement” circulated, Baltimore’s Star-K headquarters tasted success. The actual distribution of the $2,500 cash “gift” incentive, on top of the customary shadchanus for the successful matches made for Baltimore’s Orthodox women, was not the sole measure of accomplishment.
Star-K’s novel attempt at remedying the universal singles problem locally was made with the twin hope of inspiring the launching of similar programs by organizations and individuals in other “out-of-town” communities. As soon as the news hit the press, Star-K was flooded with telephone calls, letters and e-mails from around the world.

Wolf Appliance Company’s Products Now Certified By Star-K

Wolf Appliance Company’s Products Now Certified By Star-K

05 | 05 | 2003

KOSHER TODAY

Wolf Appliance Company, a leading manufacturer of luxury cooking instruments and corporate companion of Sub-Zero Freezer Company announced that the majority of its products are now certified as Sabbath – and holiday – compliant by Star-K Kosher Certification. All of the models of Wolf’s gas range top, gas cooktop, pro-range, dual fuel range, electric cooktop, and built-in electric single and double oven are approved for use in acordance with the rules spcified by Star-K. “We have worked hard to receive this certification,” said Jim Bakke, president and chief executive officer for Sub-Zero/Wolf. “We strive for product design that is aesthetically innovative and ergonomic, as well as beneficial to the specific needs of the Jewish faith.”

Star-K – Local Kashrus Agency with National Impact

Star-K – Local Kashrus Agency with National Impact

10 | 01 | 2002

By: Staff Reporter
KOSHER TODAY

…Remarkably, the Star-K strives to maintain a healthy balance between its role as a local kashrus service agency and as a national symbol. This past summer, some 2000 Jewish athletes saw the local hospitality side of the Star-K. Baltimore was the host city for the North American Maccabi Games. As a result of the Star-K’s supervision, the athletes, housed at the state university in suburban Towson, were able to eat kosher throughout the 4 days of the competition. The big hit for the athletes, who came from 20 cities and several foreign countries, were the tens of dozens of kosher-certified Krispy Kreme donuts made available to them during breaks in the games.

Companies Cashing in on Demand for Kosher

Companies Cashing in on Demand for Kosher

08 | 01 | 2002

By: Dan Mayfield
adapted from SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE

Three years ago, Eagle Ranch Pistachios of Alamogordo, N.M., got a request from one of its best customers. “We were requested to get a kosher certification from a customer we have a real good relationship with, a diamond broker in New York,” Eagle Ranch co-owner Marianne Schweers said. “We do a lot of corporate gifts through the company. It’s home-based in Israel and decided it wasn’t going to do business with anyone that wasn’t kosher. So we said we’ll give it a shot.”

Appliances that help Jews Keep Kosher

Appliances that help Jews Keep Kosher

04 | 16 | 2001

The following article discussing STAR-K’s Sabbath Mode appliances was penned by Annie Groer and appeared in the Washington Post on April 16, 2001:

In the beginning, strict biblical edicts governed cooking during the Jewish Sabbath and holy days.

These days, appliance-makers are adding features to help Jews cook yet comply with bans on work during the day of rest and starting fires on holidays. Dacor (since 1989), KitchenAid (since 1996) and General Electric (beginning this week) offer ovens and stoves equipped with what all call a “Sabbath Mode.”