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| Rabbi inspecting huge machine |
Sales of kosher food products are expected to grow sharply this year after several recent food scandals have increased its appeal to non Jewish consumers.
Kosher certification is increasingly being used as a quality appeal for products as the modern era of food technology meets the ancient Jewish dietary code.
Because of strict Jewish religious laws, rabbis can be seen in some surprising places at food plants, such as an Orthodox Jewish rabbi inspecting a huge steel tank for cleanliness.
Research firm Mintel projects that kosher food sales will grow by more than 20 percent between 2008 and this year, as Tootsie Rolls and Oreos received kosher certification.
About one in every eight Americans buy kosher products. Sixty percent said the quality is the main reason for buying kosher.
Albany Law School Professor Timothy Lytton said that some consumers like to know that someone is conducting additional testing because now food is being produced globally.
“As more non Jews are buying kosher for quality reasons it becomes extremely important for rabbis to be extra careful with their kosher certification. Rabbis should hold a watchful eye on the products they are certifying as kosher, to ensure that the products are of high quality,” Menachem Gurwich, 35, of Brooklyn, New York told YourJewishNews.com after being asked to comment on the sharp increase of kosher food sales.