JERUSALEM: Sushi, shrimp and vodka under kosher inspection to enter strict Jewish diet

Insects in seaweed, the inseparable component of the Japanese sushi, tops the debate over dishes certified to enter the strict Kosher menu. Decked in the long coats and black hats of their ancestors in medieval Europe, ultra-Orthodox Jewish leaders gathered to debate over the prospect of adopting the kosher label to modern day cuisine. Over 200 kosher experts on "kashruth" from 40 countries gathered in the holy city of Jerusalem to take a closer look at Jewish dietary laws, a strictly limited cuisine that sets them apart from most Western societies. A holy scripture spells out the strict laws of kashrut, or Jewish dietary laws but the 151 sets of rules written over 5,000 years ago does not address culinary developments of modern day. It was the realisation that there is no end to new tastes and dishes that brought Jewish leaders to convene for a four day annual conference where rabbis exchange information on the latest gastronomical innovations and technology. A variation of shrimp has already received the kosher stamp, but one of the world's biggest culinary hits, Japanese sushi, has not yet been certified. The fine green seaweed wrapped around the culinary delight is kosher in itself, explained Rabbi Sholem Fishbane of Chicago's Rabbinical Council. It's the unwanted parasites that puts the Japanese dish at the heart of the debate, he said. "The real problem with seaweed is the insects that get inside, and insects are not kosher. We have seahorse that gets in there and many shrimps that get in there," explained Rabbi Fishbane. The basic laws of kashruth were codified in a 16th century in a codex book called "Shulchan Aruch", or set table, which is subsumed into the "Halacha" - a collective scripture of the basic rules of the Jewish faith. In the modern era, the practice and faith of Judaism took on different forms and split up into various streams, from those who adapted to modern technology to those who take a more literal approach to religious scriptures. Those who chose to remain committed to the strict laws of the Halacha abide by the clear rules of kashruth, which have mystical aspects as well practical and hygienic rationales. But just as the holy scripture fails to address some of the most basic modern day technologies, such as electricity, mobile phones or even vehicles, so does it fail to address the ingredients of the gastronomical dishes of the 21st century. "Before few years we don't know what is a mobile phone, computer and it is new and it is working. The same with the halacha, we can work with all the new technology and put it on the table for this year too," said Rabbi Aharon Nesher, President of the Jerusalem-based Kashrut Institute Maskil L'David. Many countries have a committee of rabbis that visits food production facilities to inspect production methods and contents of the product before issuing a kosher certificate. Other than key principal foods that are deemed unkosher, invalidating characteristics may range from the presence of a mixture of meat and milk, to the use of produce from Israel that has not been tithed properly, or even the use of cooking utensils which had previously been used for non-kosher food. But the basic foundations of the kosher label have become increasingly difficult to upkeep with modern food industry and cookery, where ingredients and products are technologically processed. The kosher convention was founded to tackle issues of modernism by using, for example, kosher ingredients for modern type dishes or certifying new products as kosher after thorough research and debate. Over 5,000 years of progress and development of gastronomical products could take another 5,000 years to research and determine their fate in the kosher cuisine. But in the eyes of believers, abiding by the laws of kashruth, like other principles in the 'halacha', is upkeeping up a channel of connection with the divine. "We do it because God said so," said Rabbi Barenbaum, administrator at Jerusalem-based Kashrut Institute Maskil L'David.

ITN Source | May 20, 2007

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