20 reiday,. AO!' 13 DETROIT. JEWISH 11i6VS Passover prices: who to blame? With this holiday, you may need a lot of leavened `bread' in your wallet BY ALAN HITSKY News Editor Every year, Jewish con- sumers complain about the cost of Passover foods. Be- lieve it or not, the Jewish consumer himself may be at fault for the high costs. According to Rabbi Elimelech Goldberg, the new spiritural leader at Young Israel of Southfield and a member of the kas- hruth committee of the Council of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater Detroit, the eco- nomic laws of supply and demand are hard at work on this ancient holiday. The rabbi explains that there is a greater demand for kosher products at Passover. Many people who do not keep kosher the rest of the year make the effort to observe the holiday. The manufacturers have a limited time to produce the many special products for Passover, and the time period of the demand is also limited. The executive director of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America (UOJCA), Rabbi Pinchas Stolper, told The Jewish News that he be- lieves most of the increase in prices is at the retail level and is not the fault of the manufacturers. He illus- trates his point by the price of fresh fish. If it goes up at Passover time it is simply the result of a pricing deci- sion by the shopkeeper be- cause there is no manufac- turing, processing or rab- binical supervision in- volved. Rabbi Goldberg believes that increased prices are partially caused by con- sumer expectation: the shopper is used to paying higher prices for Passover products and has come to expect it. The consumer has not taken advantage of con- sumer seminars sponsored by individual synagogues, the Koshergram and the Passover Handbook for the Jewish Family published by the Council of Orthodox Rabbis, or lists made avail- able by the UOJCA and other rabbinic groups, the rabbi says. Rabbi Jack Goldman, who is the Metropolitan Kashruth Council of Michi- gan, and Rabbi Beryl Broyde of the Council of Or- thodox Rabbis, sent The Jewish News lists compiled by the UOJCA and the Chicago Board of Rabbis. These products are kosher for Passover without having a chevsher — special seal: Cosmetics: Almay, Re- vlon and Rx lipsticks; Al- may, Avon, Estee Lauder, Revlon and Rx perfumes; Scope and Cepacol mouth- wash; Proctor & Gamble shampoos, toothpaste and deodorants; Alberto-Culver shampoos; Selsun Blue shampoo; contact lens solu- tion; Johnson baby powder; Chap Stick; Clearasil; Desi- tin; Wipe & Dipe; and the following vitamins: Nata- lins, Poly-vi-Sol, and Poly- vi-Flor. Infant formulas: Isomil, Similac and Enfamil (using separate utensils). Any whole spices (except for mustard) may be used without special labeling. All ground spices must have reliable rabbinical certifi- cation. Any raw or frozen fruit (unsweetened and Cost of a 'typical' Seder If our charitable relatives did not invite us for both Seders every year, this is what the Hitskys would have spent last Sunday at Farmer Jack's Dexter-Davison Market to prepare a Seder for 20 persons: MENU: Seder plate: horse radish root, shank bone (we'll use a bone from the soup chicken), charoset, karpas, matzot, one roasted egg. Appetizers: wine, gefilte fish (to economize, we'll buy the jars rather than make our own), chicken soup, knaidlach, salt water and hardboiled eggs. Dinner: turkey, farfel dressing, cranberry sauce, asparagus, salad. Dessert: sponge cake. Soft drinks, coffee. COST: $104.52 Apples, 87e; walnuts, $1.99; horseradish root, 88e; parsley, 20e; matzot, $5.15 for five pounds; wine, two 3-liter bottles at $10.48 each; two big jars of gefilte fish at $5.66 each; two boxes of frozen chicken for soup, $10; matza meal, two small or one large box, $2.18; oil, $1.66; eggs, five dozen at 99e per dozen; 20 pounds of turkey at 88e per pound; two boxes of matza farfel at 99e each; one pound mushrooms, $1.38; four pounds of as- paragus at 88' per pound; five cans cranberry sauce at 89e per can; cake meal, $1.09; three 8-packs of soda pop at $1.99 per pack; carrots, 87e, and onion, 25e, for soup; celery, 79e; horseradish in a jar, 55e, salt, 44e; sugar, $1.98; coffee, $3.49. Truthfully, we have a tradition in our family that various members contribute assigned portions of the meal; and leftovers from the Seder will be used during the week of Passover. Nonetheless, my wife and I are certain that after our family reads this article we will be hosting at least one Passover Seder in the year 5745. I t _ 3 Natalia Victor begins her shopping for Passover. without syrup) may be used during Passover, and Dole canned pineapple in its own juice; dried (not glazed) fruit in packages may be used as long as they contain no oils or corn syrup, with the ex- ception of Banana Chips, which should not be used. Candies containing lecithin or gelatine should not be used for Passover, even if designated "K Gelatine" or "Kosher Gelatine." Non-prescription medicines which may be used for Passover are Ac- tifed, Alka Seltzer, Apirin, Bufferin, Anacin, Tylenol, Bicarbonate of Soda, Chlor- trimeton, Contac tablefs, Emetrol, Fasteeth, Gelusil, Isopropyl Alcohol, Kaopec- tate, Liquiprin, Maalox (but not Maalox Plus Liquid), Midol, Mylanta, Pepto Bis- mol, Polident Tablets, Senokot and Sinutabs. The following products must have reliable rabbini- cal certification on each package: beverages, can- dies, coffee, jam, jellies, ices, ice cream, instant tea, ketchup, margarine, mayonnaise, ground horse- radish, processed foods, salt, saccharin, soup mixes, sour pickles and tomatoes, syrups, oils and shortening, vinegar and cider, cakes, cookies, coffee whiteners. This is a very incomplete list. For further informa- tion, call the Council of Or- thodox Rabbis, 559-5005, or Rabbi Broyde, 967-0552. • The major food chains in the Detroit area have been making some efforts in re- cent years in the area of . holiday prices. Farmer Jack especially, headed by Paul Borman, has been gaining attention from Jewish shoppers for discounting Jewish holiday foods. But a comparison of Passover ad- vertisements in last week's Jewish News shows that many of the major chains are discounting at least some of their holiday items. A number of dairy prod- ucts manufactured by Bor- man Foods divisions, such as Farm Maid and Wesley, generally have the same or lower prices for Passover. However, some national brands at Farmer Jack car- ried higher prices last week. Manischewitz farfel for Passover was marked $1.09. The same size box in the not-kosher-for-Passover display was 87e. The Manis- chewitz matza meal was $1.09 for Passover and 73e not-for-Passover. A member of the staff of the National Council of Young Israel in New York told The Jewish News that consumer education is the key to holding down prices. The Young Israel move- ment, which is not involved in kashruth supervision, has initiated several highly-publicized investi- gations of kosher food in- dustries in New York State, especially kosher poultry. Alan Mond of the na- tional Young Israel staff said those investigations served as a warning for the manufacturers and retail- ers, as well as the kosher consumer. ' "We of course 'don't' have Photo by Benyas-Kaufinan figures for this Passover yet," Mond pointed out, "but last year the increases in prices for Passover did not seem as dramatic. It is hard to be specific, though, be- cause prices vary geograph- ically, froin company to company and from store to store." Mond said the New York hearings on prices have suc- ceeded in making indi- vidual rabbis more con- scious of the problem. He suggested that rabbinic supervision of a product should be contingent on fair pricing. Rabbi Goldman of the Michigan Kashruth Council advertises that his organization maintains this policy. Rabbi Goldberg of Young Israel of Southfield suggests an additional way of lower- ing prices: kosher food cooperatives. He said such enterprises have been tried in Los Angeles with a great deal of success. In any event, all of the rabbinic agencies agree on one thing: the Jewish con- sumer should be far more knowledgeable about Passover products. They recommend that individu- als should contact their own rabbi for information, and take advantage of the available literature from the UOJCA and the Council of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater Detroit. Cholov Yisrael Rabbi Elimelech Goldberg of Young Israel of Southfield explained to The Jewish News that the so- called "Blue Milk," the higher-priced kosher for Passover milk in distinctive blue cartons, is not indica- tive of Passover pricing problems. Many Orthodox Jews use the specially-supervised milk year-round because of the Biblical decree that milk should be supervised. On Passover, special ar- rangements are made with the Michigan Milk Pro- ducers Association (MMPA). The feeding schedules for the cows are changed so that there is no possibility that grains being fed to the animals could come in contact with the milk. Rabbi Goldberg explained that many observant Jews are satisfied with U.S. Department of Agricul- ture regulations and enforcement during the year, but want the specially-supervised milk for Passover. "On Passover, the slightest bit of chometz negates the Passover," he said. He added that the cost of rabbinic supervision is negligible, but the special arrangements with the MMPA and transportation costs contribute to the high price of "Blue Milk." For those not as strict, regular milk supervised kosher for Passover is available.