[Sca-cooks] kosher soda

[Barbara Nostrand]

Noble Cousins!

Greetings from Solveig!

>as to the sugar/kosher question........
>*some* sugar is refined using pig blood (or was.... I don't know if they
>still do) but that sugar is NOT kosher.  most of the sugar should have a
>small "K" or a "U in a circle" or something indicating that it is NOT
>processed with animal product.  this sugar is kosher.

	"When research into ingredients and production practices indicates
	that there are no apparent kashrus problems with the product, then
	Halacha permits us to follow the concept of Holchin Achar HaRov,
	that we may assume that the majority is the scenario with which we
	are dealing."
		http://www.koshersupermarket.com/lakewood/kosherlaw.htm

Sugar is a commodity product produced using industrial processes. The
presumption concerning commercially produced and package sugar is that it
is kosher. Issues with blood of any kind adulterating sugar are so small
that they are not mentioned by either Rabbi Yacov Lipshultz in Kashruth
(Mesorah Publications) or by Rabbi S. Wagschal in The New Practical Guide
to Kashruth (Feldheim).

There are interesting discussions about honey. The problem with honey is
whether or not it is excreted by bees. Our rabbis have found that honey
is made by bees from flower nectar which is a kosher source and not
excreted by them. Consequently, honey is kosher.

>oh. and in the Rabbis decisions can be very strange department..... Gelatin,
>made from animals is considered kosher and pareve (not meat) because it has
>been refined so far from its origins.

	"Gelatin is produced by extracting collagen, a fibrous animal
	protein, from beef, calf and pork. After soaking and cooking,
	collagen is filtered, refined and evaporated to obtain the gelatin.
	Many years ago in the United States, kosher gelatin was produced
	from kosher-slaughtered and processed calf skins. The Suply of this
	kosher gelatin has long since been exhausted, and the product is no
	longer produced."

					Rabbi Yacov Lipshultz
					Kashruth
					Mesorah Publications

Currently, a synthetic substitute is used in Kosher food. Strictly observant
Jews frequently remove medicine from capsules before ingestion to avoid
eating gelatin. Others rely on leniencies surrounding life and health.

About hekshir (kosher marks). Plain k such as mentioned in the note about
sugar is not considered reliable by the Orthodox community. The problem
with plain k is that it is a mark freely put on products by the manufacturer
and is not an indication of rabbinic supervision. Circle K is owned by the
Orthodox Union and Circle K by United Kashruth Laboratories. Reliable
hekshir include kauf K. Directories of kosher products are published each
year before passover. These directories include an incomplete guide to
hekshir. In New York State, misrepresenting food as kosher is a civil
crime. Other places, anyone can represent food as being kosher without
civil penalty. Triangle K is generally considered to be a poor hekshir
by the Orthodox community.

Do all products require hekshir? No. Many products which currently display
hekshir do not require them. You do not need to shop for a hekshir when
buying aluminium foil or paper plates despite the fact that you will see
hekshir on such products.
--

					Your Humble Servant
					Solveig Throndardottir
					Amateur Scholar

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| Barbara Nostrand, Ph.D.         | Solveig Throndardottir, CoM, CoS   |
| deMoivre Institute              | Carolingia Statis Mentis Est       |
| mailto:nostrand at acm.org         | mailto:bnostran at lynx.neu.edu       |
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