Krazy
Kosher
PHOTO BY DANIEL LIPPITT
marks the spot
for many health-conscious
Jews and gentiles.
MICHELE MOSS SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Marty Lerner:
Kosher food is
gaining popularity.
32
1111 he health enthusiasts of Ameri-
ca have ventured down a new av-
enue on the map of low-fat,
high-nutrient food choices — the
kosher market.
Hold on, now. Don't throw out
the rice cakes quite yet. Your
great-grandmother's recipe for
sweet kugel, although it might be
kosher, is not any healthier than
you guessed it was. And Jewish
favorites, like blintz souffle,
creamed herring and chopped liv-
er, have not been added to the
Heart-Smart list.
However, Americans seem to
be showing increasing fascina-
tion with food carrying the kosher
seal of approval says marketing
consultant Menachem Lubinsky
of Integrated Marketing in New
York. In fact, kosher products are
in demand like never before.
What's the appeal? Just ask
Morris Goodman, owner of Sara's
Glatt Kosher Deli in Southfield.
His restaurant clientele has in-
creased 15 to 20 percent in the
last two years. He says his
business is booming because
people are generally becoming
more aware of what they eat,
and they see health benefits in
the stringent inspection stan-
dards dictated by kosher law. Mr.
Goodman believes kosher ani-
mals are better treated than oth-
er animals.
"For a cow to be kosher, it has
to be healthy to begin with," Mr.
Goodman says.
Kosher standards of meat and
packaged foods differ from those
of the federal government.
Kosher cuts of meat must be
soaked and salted to remove all
traces of blood. They also are ex-
amined closely by a highly
trained Jewish inspector, or
mashgiach, for any sign of dis-
ease or lesion.
If a flaw is found, the entire an-
imal is discarded. Under feder-
al government standards, only
the infected area is prohibited
from sale. Kosher inspectors of
food factories check on plants
more frequently than the gov-
ernment and often drop in unan-
nounced to keep companies alert.
Because kosher food must be
inspected by both a mashgiach
and the federal government,
many see an advantage to buy-
ing kosher. They assume the two-
way inspection makes the food
safer and better prepared for sale.
"Everything is watched closer.
There are simply more people
keeping an eye on it," Mr. Good-
man says.
Other people buy kosher for
humanitarian reasons. Kosher
meat comes from animals that
have been slaughtered with spe-
cial methods.
People view these methods as
cleaner and less devastating to
the animal's well-being. Some
kosher chicken, for instance, is
bought from the Amish who raise
animals without drugs or chem-
icals.
The laws of kashrut were not
written with health benefits in
mind. Instead, they date back to
the story of Adam and Eve who
were told not to eat "the forbid-
den fruit." God was trying to
teach them self-control, says Rab-
bi Joseph Krupnik of the Coun-
cil of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater
Detroit.
The laws of kashrut were cre-
ated for the purpose of suppress-
ing indulgent tendencies, Rabbi
Krupnik says. Anything a person
desires, first must be approved
by God. The traditional Jew be-
lieves that as one learns to curb
the appetite for forbidden foods,
self-control can be achieved in all
aspects of life — thus teaching
one to live moderately and with
purity.
`The most correct time to show
subservience to God is through
what is most important to us," he
says.
Companies are adapting to
kosher regulation at record pace
to keep up with demand. The
kosher market is estimated at
$2.5 billion, according to Marty
Lerner, owner of Lakewood Spe-
cialty Food Center in Royal Oak
Township, which specializes in
kosher products.
Mr. Lerner says that by the
year 2000, the industry should
reach $6 billion. Pepsi and Frito-
Lay are among the big names
that recently have gone through
inspections to carry the kosher
label.
"One of the things that any
company which comes out with
a new product takes into consid-
eration is, does it meet kosher
standards? There is a demand
out there," Mr. Lerner says. 'The
companies care about the cus-
tomer and will find a way to cater
to him."
Currently, the industry caters
to 1 million American Jews who
keep strict kosher and 2 million
more Americans who buy kosher
products (as projected Mr. Lu-
binsky of Integrated Marketing).
"People generally believe that
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