The Kosher Scene KOSHER page 3 Rabbi Yosef Wilder, publisher of Kashrus Magazine. A look at the industry shows exponential growth in the past 20 years. With nearly 18 times the number of products, 10 times the number of buyers and four times the number of companies supervised, the American kosher scene has changed sig- nificantly in the past 20 years. Integrated Marketing Communications Inc., a New York City firm that sponsors the International Kosher Food and Food Service Trade Show held annually in Secaucus, N.J., recently released the following information about the growth in the kosher market over the past 20 years as well as pro- jections for the year 2000. Market For Kosher Certified Products VEGETARIANS/ LACTOSE INTOLERANCE 1.15M MUSLIMS/ OTHERS 1.35 M JEWS 2.00 M VEGETARIANS 13.2 M JEWS 6.0 NI KOSHER IS BE' I 'I'ER 2.50 M MUSLIMS 16.0 M 7 DAY ADVENTISTS 0.8 M POTENTIAL MARKET 1996 MARKET 7 Million Buyers 36 Million Buyers More Companies "It is very nice to say that it should not cost anything, but [the supervisors] have to make a living." More Buyers 1977 1988 — Rabbi Yosef Wikler 1994 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 6;000 7,000 8,000 9,000 10,000 1 COMPANIES PRODUCING:KOSHER PRODUCTS 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 BUYERS OF KOSHER PRODUCTS (MILLIONS) More Products More Dollars On All Certified Kosher 1977 1988 ›. 1994 1996 2000 0 "If you really wanted to scrounge around for names, I am sure you could come up with 500 [certifying groups]," Rabbi Wilder said. The groups vary in the level of supervision they provide. While one will lend its heksher only to products it supervises on a daily basis, others run more of a mail-order business, send- ing letters of certification to manufacturing plants they have never seen in exchange for a check. "We call those 'airport' hashgachah (kashrus supervision)," said Rabbi Elimelech Goldberg of the Council of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater Detroit. "[The supervisors] run to the airport to pick up the check." Rabbi Wilder said the number of disrep- utable certifying agencies "is a really small percentage of the total, but it is a problem." Rabbi Jack Goldman of the Metropolitan Kashruth Council agrees, saying some rabbis might lend their heksher to products that are questionable or downright treife, or nonkosher. He recalled one instance when he confronted a rabbi who had provided supervision to canned scallops, a species of shellfish. The man told Rabbi Goldman, "I thought they were onions." The kosher certification groups also vary in the number of products they supervise. With an army of rabbis and kosher supervi- sors, the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congre- gations of America (OU) oversees hundreds 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 NUMBER OF KOSHER CERTIFIED PRODUCTS (THOUSANDS) 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 DOLLARS SPENT ON ALL KOSHER CERTIFIED PRODUCTS (BILLIONS) ,044140.;:. 45 of manufacturing plants for approximately 80 percent of the kosher market; other inch- vidual rabbis supervise a handful of kosher ventures. Another point of diversity for the groups is the amount of money they make and what they do with it. Rabbi Wilder said the Amer- ican industry, representing 60 percent of all supervisory agencies, is responsible for col- lecting an estimated $30 million annually in fees. After paying its personnel, the OU, for ex- ample, supports the National Council of Syn- agogue Youth (NCSY), programs for disabled people and other outreach and support pro- grams with the estimated $20 million it col- lects in supervisory fees. Others use the certification to provide a liv- ing for themselves, Rabbi Wilder said. He ac- knowledged that this could be a conflict of interest; if a problem should arise at a kosher establishment, its supervising rabbi may be less inclined to drop certification since it would mean a decline in income. "It is very nice to say that it should not cost anything, but [the supervisors] have to make a living," he said. Locally, there are two kosher certification councils: the Council of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater Detroit (Vaad Harabonim) and the Metropolitan Kashruth Council (MKC) of Michigan.