August 23, 2011

STAR-K Experts Speak to Latin Americans and Baltimoreans in Summer Educational Programs
by Margie Pensak

Twenty-five years ago, Rabbi Moshe Fuller, z"l, a young Mexican student at Ner Israel Rabbinical College in Baltimore, filled a tremendous void in the world of Jewish outreach when he founded Or HaNer. Recruiting teenagers primarily from Central and South America, Rabbi Fuller provided them with the opportunity to come to the States and experience Torah-true Judaism during their summer and winter school breaks. Although the young husband and father passed away a few years ago, his dream lives on through the thousands of students he influenced, many of whom subsequently attended yeshivas. Today, there are yeshivas and learning programs throughout Latin America, and a kollel (institute of advanced Jewish studies) in Panama, thanks to Rabbi Fuller's impact.

This was the third summer that STAR-K Kashrus Administrator, Rabbi Boruch Beyer, was asked to be a guest speaker at Camp Or HaNer boys' campus on the grounds of Ner Israel Rabbinical College. The twenty or so high school aged campers hailed from Mexico, Costa Rica and Chile. Rabbi Beyer, an expert in industrial kashrus and an experienced high school instructor, gave an interactive hour and a half session on kosher basics and the challenges of keeping kosher, using a Spanish power point presentation prepared by STAR-K to augment his presentation.

"For many of the children this is the first time they can understand and appreciate all the work that goes into ensuring there is kosher food for them to eat," says Rabbi Moshe Matz, director of Camp Or HaNer. "They really enjoy and grow from the Star-K presentation."

Earlier this month, STAR-K Certification Kashrus Administrator, Rabbi Zvi Goldberg, was asked to give a shiur at Congregation Shomrei Emunah in Baltimore, Maryland, to the Blatt-a-Week learning program. About to complete the second perek of Avoda Zara, the shiur had been dealing with the sections of stam yainam, pas akum, chalav akum, bishul akum and simanim in dagim. Elly Lasson, a member of the program, approached Rabbi Goldberg about having a shiur to discuss some of the contemporary issues that emerge from the gemara. To benefit the most people possible, the shiur was opened to the entire Shomrei Emunah congregation. Rabbi Goldberg shared some guidelines of STAR-K's policies of practical contemporary halachos of fish and bishul akum. Among issues discussed was STAR-K's policy of insistence that the Mashgiach positively identify each and every fish by viewing its scales, as per the ruling of Rav Moshe Feinstein, z"l. The challenges of shopping in a store that uses the same knives to cut kosher and non-kosher were discussed, as well. The shiur was well-received and Rabbi Binyamin Marwick, rav of Congregation Shomrei Emunah, wrote a note of appreciation to Rabbi Goldberg, saying: "I heard very good feedback from those that attended. Everyone enjoyed and learned a lot. Thank you for taking the time to come-and I hope we can do this again sometime!"

May 2011

STAR-K To Host Eruv-inar This September
by Margie Pensak

If you are an eruv checker or rav hamachshir in one of the dozens of cities across the United States, Israel, Europe and Australia that has an eruv, you can now review hilchos eruv and pose your eruv shaylos, gratis, with no strings attached!

On Wednesday, September 7, at 8 pm EST, STAR-K will host the world's first Eruv-inar, featuring Rabbi Moshe Heinemann, shlita, who will discuss hilchos eruv. This inaugural long distance interactive presentation will allow participants to experience a live workshop highlighting eruv shaylos through the use of pictures of eruvim that have been submitted to STAR-K.

Pre-registration is required to participate in this program. Please forward your name, the capacity in which you serve your eruv, and the location of the eruv to eruv@star-k.org. If you have a shayla regarding your eruv, please forward pictures of it (along with a note detailing the question) to the same address. There is a 10 megabyte limit for attachments, so you may have to break up the pictures into several emails.

For further details about the Eruv-inar, please contact Rabbi Zvi Goldberg, 410-484-4110, ext. 219.

December 2010

STAR-K on Campus: For Some, a First Taste of Judaism
by Margie Pensak

For those of you who think that all colleges are "treif", STAR-K Certification knows that is not the case. STAR-K certifies eight kosher restaurants, take-outs, and concession stands on seven college campuses on the northeast coast.

The increasing number of kosher amenities on American college campuses seems to be a trend, with liberal arts colleges seeking opportunities to attract Jewish students. Kosher kitchens, and other investments of Jewish life on campus, act as magnets to attract the estimated 90% of Jewish students who attend college. For some of them, STAR-K Certification's presence on campus may be offering a very first taste of Judaism, literally and figuratively.

Rabbi Ephraim (Efy) Flamm, the director of the Jewish Collegiate Network, an affiliate of The Etz Chaim Center, an adult outreach organization in Baltimore, says that there is no question that Kosher has grown on the Maryland college campuses over the years. "I work with unaffiliated and very marginally involved students, meeting them on their turf," says Rabbi Flamm, who co-founded the organization over 20 years ago with his wife, Penina, and the backing of Mrs. Hannah Storch. "The Kosher program has grown and has helped build Jewish life on campus. It is not unusual for non-observant friends of those who are kosher observant to mingle in the dining area. I have had students who became kosher and observant because of this. The Kosher program builds a certain nucleus of students that grows, and it expands rapidly."

Rabbi Mayer Kurcfeld, the kashrus administrator who has both engineered and overseen STAR-K's certified kosher operations on campus, since the first kosher kitchen opened on the Goucher College campus in 1999, clarifies the concept of Kosher on campus today.

"Initially, these Hillel-run Kosher programs were a separate entity," explains Rabbi Kurcfeld. "The college's kosher kitchen was located in a separate facility that was frequented by Jews, alone. The reality of the situation today is that kids are traditionally kosher, but they want to eat with their non-kosher friends, as well. At all of the newer college kosher facilities, you can sit with anybody and the kosher food is available to Jew and non-Jew alike. The model has changed to make kosher accessible to everyone, and it now has a food court type of look, similar to the one you see at shopping malls. You go into one common area to sit; food is served on disposables with disposable paper placemats. We have a mashgiach temidi (supervising Rabbi who is on the premises at all times of production and operation) in the prepping and serving areas, and it is STAR-K's policy to prepare only glatt kosher and cholov Yisroel foods. Individual pre-packaged foods can be non-cholov Yisroel, under reliable national certifications, eaten at the discretion of the student."

Avigail Summers is a Torah observant freshman who attends Goucher College in Towson, Maryland, a suburb of Baltimore. Sending her daughter 1500 miles away from their Denver home was made a bit easier for Avigail's mother, Devorah, knowing that the college of her choice had a reliable kosher food plan.

"When looking at colleges, it was a top priority to find a school that offered a meal plan with a reliable hashgacha (kosher certification)," says Mrs. Summers. "Finding any school that will offer a kosher meal plan can be daunting. Often, a school will have a Hillel affiliation, but not necessarily a kosher kitchen or access to a meal plan. Knowing that Goucher is under the Star-K is very comforting.

"Avigail has made many new friends and has come to learn that although they are not affiliated, they are Jewish," Mrs. Summers continues. "Even though these kids have not signed up for the kosher meal plan, they too are allowed to eat at Hillel from the kosher kitchen once a week. Many of these students, even though they are not religious or observant, come to Hillel for Friday night Shabbat dinner. They comment on how good the food is, how comfortable the environment is, and that Hillel provides more of a dining room like they have at home instead of a cafeteria style room. They really appreciate the home style touches. In some respects, Goucher and Hillel, whether intending to or not, have provided a type of kiruv (outreach) by allowing all of the Goucher students to partake in the kosher meal plan. By no means does Hillel promote any agenda, they just welcome everyone. I feel this is beneficial to all and creates a greater sense of community."

How difficult is it to provide these students with the opportunity to keep kosher on campus? Rabbi Kurcfeld says that the challenge of setting up the new generation of kosher facilities on campus, such as those on the Franklin & Marshall, Dickinson and Muhlenberg campuses, simply entailed the mechanical details. "I made a presentation reviewing the basic rules and technical aspects of Kashrus to representatives of both the college food services and the food service industry," notes Rabbi Kurcfeld. "My challenge was to custom-tailor kosher facilities, from scratch, which worked easily within the framework of the respective schools. I mapped out exactly how the kitchens would be set up logistically for milk and meat, approving the blueprints before the construction began."

The STAR-K certified KOVE (an acronym for KOsher, VEgan) station in the Dickinson College dining hall in Carlisle, Pennsylvania serves its 10% Jewish student population and others such non-standard kosher fare as citrus London broil, coffee-rubbed brisket and falafel chicken. It is open for lunch and dinner, Sunday through Friday afternoon.

Keith Martin, the director of dining services at Dickinson's KOVE, says, "The KOVE has been very well received by Jewish and non-Jewish students alike. It is not uncommon to see long lines at The KOVE, and we expect interest to grow."

He chose to pursue kosher certification at Dickinson because, "Given Dickinson's strong Judaic-studies program, Hebrew language and study abroad offerings in Israel and extraordinarily active Hillel chapter, we thought a certified-kosher dining option would further enrich Jewish life at the college," explains Mr. Martin. "Our hope is that students will see this new addition as a sign of Dickinson's commitment to making the college an exciting place to explore Jewish heritage. The KOVE will give both Jewish students who keep kosher and all Dickinson students a delicious dining alternative.

"Dickinson has an excellent reputation for serving high-quality, delicious food in its student Dining Hall," he continues. "When the college made the commitment to offer a certified kosher dining option, it was important that the food and the service reflect that same quality. After researching the available options, we chose Star-K."

Interestingly enough, Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania, despite its Lutheran affilitation, boasts a 34% Jewish student population.. Responding to the needs of the kosher consumer and others with dietary restrictions, it recently opened The NOSHERY, featuring two separate kitchens: NOSHERY North and NOSHERY South. NOSHERY South offers meat meals and NOSHERY North offers pareve/dairy dishes to its student body. It plans to be open to the public at some point in the future.

John Pasquarello, the general manager of Muhlenberg College Dining Services, says that he pursued Kosher certification because, "We wanted to make sure our customers had food products and ingredients that meet all Kosher requirements. We chose STAR-K because of their commitment, expertise and resources to supervise Kashrus laws. Our relationship has been a true partnership. We couldn't be more happy with STAR-K."

A few years ago, Franklin & Marshall College, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, opted to offer its more than 20% Jewish population healthier kosher options, at KIVO (an acronym for Kosher, International, Vegan/Vegetarian, Organic). Open seven days a week, it serves only dairy dishes for breakfast and a choice of dairy or meat dishes for lunch and dinner. The only kosher food operation in Lancaster is open to the public, as well, while college is in session for all-you-can-eat prices.

Rabbi Hayim Schwartz, the executive vice president of the Rabbinical Seminary of America (Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim), had the opportunity to eat at KIVO with his family during a recent visit to Lancaster. He was so impressed with the kosher dining hall, he wrote the following to John Burness, the president of Franklin & Marshall College:

"You are to be commended for offering an option such as KIVO for your Jewish and other students. Many colleges do not have kosher dining facilities, with full-time mashgiach supervision from such a reputable institute such as the STAR-K of Baltimore. While I am sure the KIVO operation must cost Franklin & Marshall College a pretty penny, this letter is confirmation that your people are doing a great job operating KIVO and represent your college in the best possible way. Kudos to you and to your entire Board of Trustees for having the foresight, wisdom and understanding to undertake an operation such as KIVO and to make it available to your students, and to the greater Jewish community."

Ronnie Berman and Mark Powers are KIVO's two mashgichim (kosher supervisors). "The response has been tremendous from students across the board," says Mr. Berman. "The athletes come in for our burgers and hot dogs because they are so good. We also cater to any students with special needs diets. On both sides, we maintain a gluten-free area, for those students with Celiac disease. We carry gluten-free wraps and "bread" and always try to have a gluten-free entrée."

"I think that we are doing a tremendous Kiddush Hashem by having kosher food available to non-observant students," continues Mr. Berman. "Also, Mark and I are available to answer questions from all the students. There is a large lack of knowledge of Kashrus amongst the non-Jewish world. Many people think that we have blessed the food to make it kosher. Unfortunately, we've found many Jews who think the same. When I can educate people about the beauty of keeping kosher, I especially find my work very rewarding and fulfilling."

Likewise, for STAR-K, the logistics of setting up a kosher kitchen on campus and overseeing its operation goes beyond the actual certification of the food, itself. As Rabbi Kurcfeld put it, "Not only do I get a tremendous amount of nachas when I see the students enjoying deliciously prepared kosher food, it gives me great satisfaction to know that these colleges have offered the students the opportunity to eat kosher - an opportunity they never had before."

STAR-K Certified College Programs
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD: Kosher Korner-Terrace Court Cafe	Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD: The Smokler Center for Jewish Life (Hillel), Baltimore, MD
Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA: KIVO-Ben Franklin Dining Hall	Muhlenberg College, Allentown, PA: The Noshery North, The Noshery South
Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA: The KOVE	University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC), Catonsville, MD: Kosher Korner-Resident Dining Hall
Goucher College, Towson, MD: Hillel Student Center in Stimpson Hall	Towson University, Towson, MD: Kosher Korner-Newell Building

July 2009

STAR-K Brings Kashrus to a Location Near (and Far From) You!
by Margie Pensak

When Rabbi Chaim Glazer, an eleventh grade rebbi at Yeshiva Toras Chaim, in North Miami Beach, Florida, was teaching his class about Kelai Elanos (the issur of grafting two trees of different species together), his lesson plan research led him to a STAR-K Kashrus Kurrents article on hydroponics--the cultivation of plants in a nutrient solution rather than in soil. Always seeking to give his students "beyond book learning experiences", Rabbi Glazer contacted the author of the article, STAR-K Kashrus Administrator, Rabbi Zvi Goldberg. Rabbi Goldberg suggested that he and the bochurim learn about the halachic implications of hydroponics, face-to-face--despite the fact that they were about 950 miles apart--using a video camera.

Rabbi Glazer's talmidim were able to watch Rabbi Goldberg speak about: the ramifications which hydroponics has on the brocho rishona of fruits and vegetables, the prohibitions regarding harvesting them on Shabbos and Yom Tov, the implications hydroponics has for trumos, maaseros and shmitta, and the use of hydroponic romaine lettuce as marror at the Pesach seder. The bochurim asked some excellent questions: What do you do if you go to the store and cannot figure out if the fruit or vegetable is hydroponic? Do hydroponic strawberries have insects? Is the Israeli exported greenhouse grown romaine lettuce, Alei Katif, grown hydroponically?

Rabbi Glazer used Rabbi Goldber's shiur, in conjunction with a high-tech hydroponic greenhouse tour, to reinforce his teaching lesson. "Today's bochurim sometimes find it hard to relate to concepts they've never experienced," notes Rabbi Glazer. "Rabbi Goldberg and the Star-K educational program enabled my students to experience real-life applications of what they are learning about in the classroom."

STAR-K's utilization of technology in educating others about kashrus is nothing new. STAR-K's InterAgency TeleKosher Conference series uses the telephone to enable local vaadim, rabbis and mashgichim, the world over, to speak directly to kashrus experts from various agencies, in a non-political forum, posing their most pressing kashrus questions that are distinctive to their communities.

Students living closer to STAR-K's Baltimore, Maryland offices, have the opportunity to learn about kashrus, in person, without the use of technology. STAR-K Kashrus Administrator, Rabbi Dovid Heber, recently spoke to a group of Lakewood Teachers Seminary students about the various production methods of breakfast cereals and their impact on Hilchos Brochos. Similarly, tenth graders from Reenas Bais Yaakov, in Highland Park, New Jersey, benefitted from a recent shiur which Rabbi Heber delivered exclusively for them--a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into the STAR-K kosher symbol, from a halachic, technical, and tracking perspective.

Why did Reenas Bais Yaakov teacher, Mrs. Chaya Eidelman, decide to visit STAR-K, with her tenth grade students? "I wanted to show the girls something that would encapsulate Jewish Baltimore. Of course, STAR-K is known far and wide for kashrus, and things beyond kashrus, also."

STAR-K's educational efforts also include the hosting of an intensive week-long annual Kashrus Training Seminar, each summer, for rabbonim, kollel fellows, and others serving as klei kodesh. It features lectures by STAR-K's rabbinic staff members, audio-visual presentations, a hands-on practicum, and several field trips.

STAR-K took a mini-version of its Kashrus Training Seminar on the road, to the yungerleit of Rabbi Avrohom Lefkowitz's Kollel Bnei Torah, Lakewood, New Jersey, in late December. Rabbinic Administrator, HaRav Moshe Heinemann, and STAR-K Kashrus Administrators addressed various topics, including: Kashering --Restaurants/Caterers/Factories, Guide to Hashgocho of Restaurants and Caterers (includes checking for tolaim), Cholov Yisroel, and The Kashrus of Bakeries.

These educational programs are just some of the many ways that STAR-K CERTIFICATION is committed, as a non-profit agency, to representing the kosher consumer in promoting kashrus through education, research and supervision. For further information regarding STAR-K programs, contact 410-484-4110. To join STAR-K's ongoing TeleKosher Conference Series, scheduled for the last Wednesday of each month at 12 noon EST, call: 605-475-8590 and enter conference 528-5502.

June 2009

STAR-K Leads Kosher Novice Tour for Johns Hopkins University Students

Jenna Fogel's grandparents keep kosher and she has eaten kosher foods, but she admits she never really understood the meaning behind them. "I always thought a rabbi said a prayer and put a kosher stamp on the box and then it was considered kosher," says Jenna, a Chemical Engineering major. Such kashrus misconceptions were clarified for Jenna and nineteen of her fellow Johns Hopkins University students when STAR-K Kashrus Administrator, Rabbi Zvi Goldberg, led them on a recent tour of Baltimore's Seven Mile Market.

"A major focal point of the tour was to show how many of the items they normally buy are kosher already, and that they can keep kosher nowadays with minimal effort," said Rabbi Goldberg. "I also explained what goes into certifying more complicated items, such as sauces or poultry, and showed them what the common symbols look like."

The more than 20,000 kosher products dotting the aisles of Seven Mile Market–one of the largest kosher supermarkets in the U.S.--motivated the Hopkins undergrads to ask hashkafic questions like: Why would an imitation bacon bits product be needed if it is just for taste purposes, and one should not have ever tasted bacon? Doesn't this defeat the whole purpose of kashrut?

The trip to Seven Mile Market was just one stop along the tour route of the Baltimore observant community for the members of the Sinai Scholar Society, a program offered through the Chabad House at Johns Hopkins--an affiliate program run on forty Chabad Houses on Campus throughout the United States, for students with a minimal yiddishkeit background. Rabbi Zev Gopin, director of Chabad of Johns Hopkins and Central Baltimore, offered the Sinai Scholars program this past semester for the first time and feels that already it has been a great success. The complimentary program, limited to twenty students per semester, is offered two hours per week and requires writing a three to five page paper upon completion. Participation is completely voluntary and students do not receive credits for it.

"At the end of the Sinai course, a majority of the students said that they felt a major void when it came to their yiddishkeit," said Rabbi Gopin. "They might have prepared for their bar or bas mitzvah, yet, did not feel part of the Jewish community. Even those that admitted being agnostic, at the beginning of the program, felt otherwise by the program's end.

"I think the Seven Mile Market experience was a major eye opener for students who did not have any exposure to kosher," continues Rabbi Gopin."We got them as close as possible to what it is like to keep kosher. They learned how to be mindful of what is out there and how easy it is to observe. Thanks to the help from STAR-K, and the guidance of Rabbi Goldberg, the students were given an out-of-book experience they would not have had otherwise."

(By: Margie Pensak / YWN Desk)

June 2009

STAR-K Invited to Talk (Kosher) Turkey in Izmir
by Margie Pensak

STAR-K Certification has long enjoyed a successful and harmonious relationship with Turkey for over 25 years, providing Kosher certification for scores of Turkish companies. The STAR-K symbol appears on everything from Turkish-produced beans to candy, condiments, fruits, vegetables, juices, jams, honey, oils, nuts, pasta, pickled products, rice, sauces, teas, and vinegars.

STAR-K Kashrus Administrator, Rabbi Tzvi Rosen, was invited to Izmir in mid-May, by the Turkish Prime Ministry's Undersecretariat for Treasury and Foreign Trade, to address members of the Aegean Exporters' Association. Together, with STAR-K's Middle East/Europe Kashrus Coordinator, Rabbi Dovid Stein, he delivered a seminar, "Kosher Certification: Your Worldwide Partner for Successful Marketing". In attendance was Izmir's newest rabbi, Rabbi Mordechai Katan, and approximately thirty Turkish manufacturing companies.

Utilizing a colorful STAR-K powerpoint presentation entitled, "Understanding the World of Kosher...Naturally", the rabbis explained Kosher basics, Kosher marketplace opportunities, issues regarding the certification of various Kosher specialty products, the parallel growth of organic and Kosher, requirements and considerations when producing kosher/natural organic products, the Kosher Certification process, and the advantages of the STAR-K/QAI twin Kosher/organic certification program.

"Turkish companies have a keen interest to expand their markets and they feel that a necessary tool to assist them in that is Kosher certification," says Rabbi Rosen. "I feel that our seminar has built a bridge and a healthy rapport between the exporters union and STAR-K." Cagdas Gunes, a rapporteur at the Aegean Exporters' Association, only confirmed Rabbi Rosen's feelings when he added, "Our doors are always open for you."

March 2009

STAR-K CERTIFICATION Announces Newly Formed Alliance with Mexico's KMD Kosher Agency

BALTIMORE, MD, March 30, 2009 --The present-day Mexican Jewish community boasts a population of over 40,000. In Mexico City, alone, where the majority of Mexican Jews live, there are 23 synagogues and more than a dozen Jewish schools, where over 90% of its Jewish youth receive their education. To serve this rapidly growing Torah community, there are 19 kosher restaurants, 19 kosher butcher shops, 15 kosher bakeries, and 13 kosher grocery stores.

Jews are no strangers to Mexico. Although the Jewish presence in Mexico dates back to the Spanish Conquest, it was not until the final years of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century that a mass immigration of Jews from Syria, Greece, Turkey, the Balkans, and Eastern Europe, fleeing from persecution and poverty, gave way to the initial stages of a modern Jewish Mexican community.

Today, the Maguen David Community, formed by descendents of the Jewish immigrants from Aleppo, Syria, provides welfare, religious and educational services to its associates. Among its institutions, KMD is responsible for providing kashrus services.

To facilitate the ever-growing kashrus demands in Mexico, a newly formed alliance between STAR-K CERTIFICATION and the KMD was recently announced by STAR-K President, Dr. Avrom Pollak.

"STAR-K has a history of sharing its expertise in kashrus with other communities," explains Dr. Pollak. "We look forward to this new partnership which promises to have a positive affect on the volume of kosher meat and other food products not only in both the United States and Mexico, but throughout the world. It will be mutually beneficial for both organizations and communities, as well as the greater kosher community, especially during these challenging economic times."

"KMD is honored to announce this alliance, since it serves as an important launching pad for Mexican kashrus", said Salomon Dichi, treasurer of the Maguen David in Mexico "It means being able to provide foreign markets with Mexican-made products, showing both KMD and Star-K certifications. I would like to stress that these two companies have very similar certification standards. We hope that this alliance will be a big success in Mexico and the United States".

STAR-K Kosher Certification, a not-for-profit agency, is one of the most trusted kosher certification organizations in the world. With offices throughout the U.S., China, Australia, and Israel, STAR-K certifies food products and establishments, as well as industrial food chemicals, in well over 1,500 locations worldwide. The agency is internationally renowned for its extensive research on the complexities of food science and modern technology, as they apply to the laws of kosher, putting it on the cutting edge of the ever-growing multi-billion dollar kosher food industry. It is one of the foremost experts in the field of kosher pharmaceuticals, nutritional supplements, and medications. For more information about STAR-K, call (410) 484-4110, or visit www.star-k.org.

January 2009

 

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