Re: was: what's the hangup with paper?

[Guest guest]

http://www.kashrusmagazine.com/

On Sun, Aug 24, 2008 at 9:00 PM, ZagorskyGoldberg

wrote:

> " Elaine cleared some processed foods when she wrote her book, but who's

> to say that those formulations haven't changed since then? "

>

> , I really agree with your outlook. As an Observant Jew, I keep

> kosher. Those little letters (like the " u " inside a circle) on a product

> label mean that a product has been under fairly strict rabbinical

> supervision to confirm that what's in it is really what's in it . The

> fact that Welch's juice was confirmed by Elaine years ago to be okay and

> we're all still taking that confirmation (well, not me personally, b/c

> Welch's isn't kosher....) is, to me, really odd since I'm used to a system

> that requires far more constant supervision. Fwiw, there's a continuum of

> kosher certifications, with only some being accepted by the majority of

> Observant Jews. What makes a kosher certification considered less reliable

> is, usually, the frequency of rabbinic supervision.

>

> So while I think a book of accepted products would be nice, I doubt it would

> be practical since it would be out-of-date quite soon after it's printed.

> If you ever run across it (yeah, right!), check out Kashrus magazine. In

> it, they have lists of products that, for whatever reason, are either

> inappropriately labeled (like as being pareve [neither meat nor dairy] when

> actually they are dairy), companies that have labeled their products as

> kosher without the appropriate supervision (and fees!), etc. They even send

> out email alerts about this stuff. It is an understatement to say that

> certifying a product as specifically containing only the ingredients on its

> label is a tough job.

>

> Well, I've been wanting to say that since I read BTVC over 2 years ago!

>

> Ellen

> 10 y/0 dd scd since 5/06 for Crohn's and doing great

> down to 12.5 mg/imuran/day and heading for zero meds in just a few

> weeks!!!!!

>

>

[Guest guest]

Ellen,

You hit the nail on the head with the statement, " So while I think a

book of accepted products would be nice, I doubt it would be practical

since it would be out-of-date quite soon after it's printed. "

My question is -- how to we create this book? There are hundreds, if not

thousands of rabbis, each with a personal standard which is bolstered by

thousands of years of traditions.

We SCDers have only been around for about 25-50 years. We've only been

active for the last 10 or so.

You said, " companies that have labeled their products as kosher

without the appropriate supervision (and fees!), etc "

is another kicker. How do we certify someone is able to verify a

product as SCD legal? What is the SCD equivalent of rabbinical kosher

certification school?

There are people on this list who happily use canned tomatoes, which they

feel meet their standards, but which Dr. Haas said were illegal. Here's

, who thinks liquid smoke can be legal. There are people wanting to

buy commercial hot dogs. There's me, who makes every d@mned thing from

scratch that I can. Who sets the standard?

And, where are the fees going to come from? As you note, certifying is a

full time job. I know that if I were a practicing psychologist (which is

what I have my degrees in), I could pull in $175 an hour for counseling.

I know this because that's what the charge was which my insurance paid

when I talked to a counselor before my cancer surgery, when I was having

hysterics. So, who's going to pay the fees to have these products

certified? (I can tell you that I would love to be able to buy hot dogs

and crackers and yogurt and ice cream that I could trust!)

<g> Ya'll want to pay me $175 an hour to write companies and review

products? I could handle that pay rate, but it would sure cut down on my

participation on this list!

—

Marilyn

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Undiagnosed IBS since 1976, SCD since 2001

Darn Good SCD Cook

No Human Children

Shadow & Sunny Longhair Dachshund