Obtaining a Kashrut Certificate (Approval for Consumption by Jewish Law) for International Food Companies
Recently, more and more international food companies are seeking to enter the Israeli food market. The Israeli public has a gourmet streak, willing to try a larger variety of foods than is customary in other countries in the area.
However, the question of the kashrut of the imported products arises, and with it the various rules and regulations that the companies must follow when providing food products to the general Israeli public. This article lists the requirements and information that companies must know if they wish to obtain a Kashrut certificate for international food companies.
Obtaining a Kashrut Certificate for International Food Companies
The only body that is authorized to issue kashrut certificates in Israel for imported food products is the Chief Rabbinate. Moreover, according to the law in Israel – any type of kashrut certificate issued by external bodies or rabbis from the Diaspora or from Israel does not indicate the Chief Rabbinate’s approval and shall not be automatically recognized in Israel.
The import department of the Rabbinate is responsible for supervising the import of food products that are ostensibly kosher into Israel. The department is responsible for verifying the authenticity of the foreign kashrut certificate, the product ingredients and their quality, the name of the rabbi who issued the certificate, and whether or not the product meets the necessary standards set by the Chief Rabbinate of Israel. If these conditions are met, the import department will issue a kashrut certificate for your product.
The vast majority of international companies are interested in obtaining the certificate. In fact, commercial companies gain a broad Masorti (traditional) audience by having a kashrut certificate. In contrast, they lose, at most, a small minor part of the secular audience, since most of them do not refrain from eating kosher food.
How Long Does It Take to Obtain a Kashrut Certificate?
The rabbinate insists that the process of issuing a kashrut certificate be carried out quickly. Therefore, there will be no complicated lengthy bureaucratic procedure involved. The whole process will only take several days. If the importer collects and presents all the required paperwork, the process will be even more efficient.
Nevertheless, many efforts have been made to expedite the service for foreign companies and extend the validity of the certificate for at least six months and sometimes even a year. This provides the companies with a reasonable period of time during which they may renew their kashrut certificate if it has expired.
Recognition for international Kashrut certificates
Every import company is required to check whether the products that it wishes to distribute have foreign kashrut certificates from the manufacturer. If they do, the importer is required to check whether the certificates meet the requirements of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel.
The Rabbinate has a long list of rabbis from Israel and abroad whose kashrut certificates are known to meet the Israeli Rabbinate standards. If an imported product has a kashrut certificate by a rabbi who does not appear on this list, the importer must make their own investigations as detailed above to meet the Rabbinate requirements.
The Process of Obtaining a Kashrut Certificate from the Rabbinate
If the manufacturer does not have a kashrut certificate, you (the import company) must contact the import department at the Rabbinate of Israel. First, make sure that you have a referral to a body or qualified rabbi abroad who can issue a kashrut certificate for the manufacturer. After receiving the necessary certificate, you will be required to send several documents such as a product example, label, foreign kashrut certificate, etc. to the import department of the Rabbinate.
These documents must be sent within ten days from the time you first contacted the Rabbinate. After that, within no longer than ten days, if the product is approved, the Rabbinate will send you the desired certificate by fax or mail. If the Rabbinate does not approve the product, or there is a delay in the approval, it must notify you as to the reason for this.
If the process goes well and you receive the Rabbinate’s approval, you must review the certificate carefully and make sure that its contents are correct and meet your expectations. If you find an error, or if the contents of the certificate are different from what you requested, you must apply to the Rabbinate asking for the error to be corrected and for the expiration date to be postponed.
In general, the certificate is not very difficult to obtain and, as stated above, there should be no bureaucratic procedure or procrastination in the process of obtaining the certificate. Try to submit the required forms efficiently and professionally and avoid basic mistakes, so that you do not run into delays that may sometimes be significant.
Contact Us for a Lawyer Specializing in Obtaining Kashrut Certificates for International Food Companies
Our law firm in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv specializes in civil law. The professional lawyers at our firm will be happy to help you with obtaining a kashrut certificate. Contact us if you have any questions related to kashrut certificates via the phone numbers or email listed below.
:
:מאמרים מומלצים