New York’s 2004 Kosher Law approved

The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals last Thursday ruled that New York’s Kosher Law Protection Act was constitutional.

The case, going back to 1996, originally contested an earlier form of the Kosher Act. Commack Self-Service Kosher Meats, the plaintiffs, under Conservative supervision, stated that requiring inspection and labeling of food marketed as kosher used religious doctrine to determine its kashrut. They said that that violated the Establishment and Free Exercise clauses of the First Amendment and the Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. In 2002, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. The New York State Legislature then passed the Kosher Law Protection Act of 2004 requiring that foods sold as kosher have to be labeled as such and the certifiers identified without defining its kashrut or allowing state inspectors to decide the product’s kashrut. Commack in turn challenged that, saying essentially that it is a church-state issue and that the law is vague. The court disagreed and upheld the law, citing that the law simply requires identification of the product as kosher and who and what process is behind the kashrut of the item thus leaving the decision of its kashrut in the eyes of the consumer. The law is primarily to protect consumers against fraudulent claims of kashrut.

“It helps the kosher consumer,” explained Nathan Diament, Executive Director for Public Policy of the Orthodox Union. “You have a complement to kashrut certification organizations like the OU that are working from a halachik angle to ensure that food sold as kosher is kosher halachikly. It allows the state to back it up, not halachikly, but makes sure consumers are not defrauded; it’s a fraud protection statute. The new version is a disclosure statute. It requires you to make known to the customer who is certifying it kosher. It gives the consumer the ability to have more information to make an informed decision. It’s good for everybody, anyone who’s interested in kosher food.”

“I am pleased that the court upheld the 2004 Kosher Law Protection Act, which I supported,” said Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos. “This ruling correctly interpreted the intent of the law, which is to protect against fraud and ensuring that products labeled as kosher are actually kosher. This is an important decision for people who adhere to a kosher diet or choose to purchase kosher products."

“We welcome the state oversight as a benefit for the kosher consumer,” said Yoeli Steinberg, General Manager of Gourmet Glatt in Cedarhurst. “If you are a kosher supermarket, that’s what it’s all about, making your consumers happy. It’s the essence of a kosher supermarket. It separates an all kosher supermarket from a supermarket that is not kosher but has a kosher aisle. When you walk in to Gourmet Glatt you know that every item in the store is certified kosher and that’s consumer protection on the highest level. Part of that is the consumer protection provided by the state.”