| June 21, 2002 OU Kashrut Strives to Certify All Israeli Produce for Export The following statement was issued today by Rabbi
Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, At issue is the question of whether OU supervised caterers are permitted to use such produce. It goes without saying that the OU is 100% firm in its commitment to supporting Israel, her people, and her economy. The OU Kashrut Division operates in Israel with the express purpose of certifying as many products as possible for export abroad, and works with the Israel Economic Consul in New York, Mr. Zohar Peri, to help boost Israel’s exports of food products. A visit to the OU website, www.ou.org, will quickly show the myriad means by which we urge the public to express its support in concrete ways, for example, by shopping online for Israeli products. Nevertheless, the kosher consuming public relies on us to be absolute in the halachic standards we require of those companies which we certify. The problem with tithing arises out of the fact some Israeli produce requires tithing and some does not. Since one cannot separate produce which requires tithing from produce which is exempt from tithing (“min hap’tur al hachiyuv”), the process needs to occur in Israel, where the source of supply is still identifiable. While there is considerable halachic discussion on this issue, and room for other opinions, we have today again discussed the matter with Chief Rabbi Eliyahu Bakshi-Doron, who affirms our concerns and feels that the proper solution is certification in Israel prior to export. The Chief Rabbi told us that he will make every effort to establish such a system. Additionally, Mr. Amos Ohr, the President of Agrexco, which is the primary exporter of Israeli produce, has agreed to cooperate in this matter so that, over the course of the next few months, a system will be established to separate terumot and ma’aserot in Israel on all fresh produce exported to the USA. The main items of fresh produce that are imported to America are tomatoes, peppers, lychee nuts and sharon fruit. It should be noted that, currently, this produce is not entering America, as the growing season ends in April and does not begin again until November. Hopefully, the new system for tithing in Israel will be in place before the new season begins. We also want to remind you that numerous Israeli products are currently available under OU supervision. We are always ready to respond to questions
concerning our halachic standards, and we encourage anyone with any
concerns to contact us. |