January 17 • 2019 17
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move cattle and livestock around to
allow the soil to regenerate and regrow
the perennial grasses and greenery the
animals need to flourish,
” Kimelman-
Bloch said. It’
s an exciting time to be
doing this, she notes. “Regenerative
agriculture techniques yield a higher
grade of beef, meaning it’
s more tender,
not as dry. And you don’
t have to add
Worchestershire! Chefs love it.
”

ETHICAL TREATMENT
So, how do Jews wrestle with the wide-
spread purchase of kosher meat not
certified as higher welfare? And why is
the way an animal is killed the defining
principle as to whether meat is kosher
or not, and not how the animal was
treated during its lifetime? Where
does the concept of cruelty to animals,
or tzaar baalei chayim, a core value in
Judaism, come into play?
Rabbi Aaron Starr of Congregation
Shaarey Zedek in Southfield explains
that while the laws of
kashrut are ancient as
prescribed by the Torah
and elaborated upon by
the rabbis, “in modern
times, both because of
our desire to uplift the
Jewish value of tzaar
baalei chayim and some
people’
s effort to seek
a ‘
reason’
for kashrut separate from
preventing intermarriage, notions of
ethical kashrut have taken form.
”
He adds that “what Hazon defines
as animal ‘
welfare’
is exactly the way
our ancestors would have treated their
animals prior to the industrialization
of food production.
”
Demands for ethical kashrut, he
notes, seek a return to treating animals
with dignity as God’
s creatures and to
ensure the cleanliness of [the] meat.
“The traditional laws of kashrut
presume our animals are treated in this
way and, therefore, do not stipulate
specifically such practices. In the name
of health and of tzaar baalei chayim,
the time has come for rabbis con-
cerned with kashrut to further expand
the system’
s laws to perpetuate animal
dignity and cleanliness while, at the
same time, affirming the business real-
ities of the kosher meat industry.
”
Hack said, “We recognize that the
increased costs for organizations to
go kosher, let alone higher welfare,
can really be prohibitive. So, if we are
able to cover the overages through
this grant and educate them on higher

welfare, then the hope is that they will
eventually pick it up on their own.
”
At Hillel, for example, the average
monthly budget for meat is about
$1,700; to buy higher welfare meat, the
cost climbs closer to $3,000 monthly.
The Hazon grant covers the extra cost
each month.

OTHERS STEPPING UP
Another Hazon Seal site taking
advantage of the Hazon grant is
Congregation Shir Tikvah in Troy.
Executive Director Lorelei Berg says
her organization is getting ready to
place its first order for higher welfare
eggs and chicken.
“This is something that totally aligns
with our congregation’
s philosophy,
”
she said. “We are warm and welcoming
— and we are open and aware of all
the decisions we make and how they
affect the world.
”
Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue,
Jewish Ferndale and Congregation
Shaarey Zedek are also Hazon Seal
sites taking advantage of the Hazon
grant monies to purchase higher
welfare eggs. “Shaarey Zedek serves a
weekly Shabbat lunch with egg salad
and kugel, feeding a minimum of 200-
400 congregants every Shabbos,
” said
Jeri Fishman, congregation president.
“If, as the saying goes, we are what
we eat,
” Starr said, “then what we
eat ought to be healthy and ethical;
it ought to be in keeping with God’
s
expectations of a life well lived.
” ■


For details about Hazon, its seal of sustain-
ability credential or higher welfare purchas-
ing, email Brittany Feldman at Brittany.
feldman@hazon.org. For a graphic com-
paring grain-fed and grass-fed meat, go to
bit.ly/2FhqVV7. Higher welfare eggs
(Alfresco Eggs by Vital Farms) can be pur-
chased at Target and select grocery stores.

Rabbi Aaron
Starr

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