K A S H R U T . C O M_©

Kosher Alert Goji Berries

• November 29, 2018 from the cRc:
  The cRc, together with other Kashrus Agencies, have been finding a high number of insects in dried goji berries.
  Until further notice, dried goji berries are not recommended, even when bearing kosher certification.
• November 29, 2018 from EarthKosher:
  EarthKosher has received and verified reports of consumers finding insects in packages of dried goji berries.
  At this time, goji berries should not be consumed even when bearing our Kosher symbol.

Kashrut information on Trader Joe's Gorgonzola Cheese Crackers

December 6, 2017 from the OU in response to a question from the editor and on November 29, 2018 from the COR Detroit:

Trader Joe's Gorgonzola cheese crackers that have an OU-D list animal rennet on the ingredient list. This is a printing error. The product is kosher and does not contain animal rennet.

November 29, 2018 from the COR Detroit::

BELL PEPPERS FROM ISRAEL (red, yellow and orange) will soon begin appearing in U.S. stores, and will require taking of Terumos and Maaseros. Consumers should carefully check the fine print on the package, or the sticker on individual peppers sold loose, for the country of origin. Often the same brand has some peppers from Israel and some from other locations, so each individual package or pepper should be checked.

One should always be careful when buying produce to check the sticker, bag label or original case for the country of origin. Some additional examples of Israeli produce commonly found in the U.S. include tomatoes, carrots, citrus fruit (oranges, grapefruit, lemons, mandarins, clementines and pomelos), persimmons (“Sharon Fruit”), mangos, dates, dill and parsley.

Information on tithing can be found here
COR video on tithing is linked to here

November 28, 2018 from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets and Yeshiva World:

Pasteurized Whole Organic Milk, Whole Organic Milk Greek Yogurt and Whole Organic Milk Leben produced by Pelleh Farms Inc., which is located at 522 Happy Avenue, Swan Lake, NY 12783, is being voluntarily recalled due to improper pasteurization. Proper pasteurization heats milk to effectively eliminate all pathogenic bacteria, such as Listeria and Salmonella.

The recalled Whole Organic Milk, Greek Yogurt and Leben were sold in Orange County and Brooklyn, New York. All the products we re sold under the name Bethel Creamery. The Whole Milk was packaged in a 64 fluid ounce, plastic container that bears the code dates of: USE BY NOV 29 through USE BY DEC 07 2018. The Greek Yogurt was packaged in 5.3 oz. plastic cups and the Leben was sold in 6 oz. plastic cups. The Greek Yogurt and Leben container code dates are USE BY DEC 14 and 15 2018.

Routine inspection conducted by the NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets revealed that these lots of product were improperly pasteurized. Consumers with questions about this product should contact Rafoel Franklin at (845) 583 - 6059.

Outbreak of E. coli Infections Linked to Romaine Lettuce- new information

FDA Investigating Multistate Outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 Infections Likely Linked to Romaine Lettuce Grown in California

November 28, 2018 from the FDA:

Preliminary traceback information indicates that ill people in several areas across the country were exposed to romaine lettuce harvested in California. Specifically, current evidence indicates this romaine was harvested in the Central Coast growing regions of northern and central California.
The specific California counties FDA is including in this region are:

• Monterey
• San Benito
• San Luis Obispo
• Santa Barbara
• Santa Cruz
• Ventura

November 26, 2018 from the FDA:

https://www.fda.gov/Food/RecallsOutbreaksEmergencies/Outbreaks/ucm626330.htm

"Preliminary traceback information indicates that ill people in several areas across the country were exposed to romaine lettuce harvested in California. Specifically, current evidence indicates this romaine was harvested in the Central Coast growing regions of northern and central California. "
"Romaine harvested from locations outside of the California regions identified by the traceback investigation does not appear to be related to the current outbreak."
"There is no recommendation for consumers or retailers to avoid using romaine lettuce that is certain to have been harvested from areas outside of the Central Coast growing regions of northern and central California. For example, romaine lettuce harvested from areas that include, but are not limited to the desert growing region near Yuma, the California desert growing region near Imperial County and Riverside County, the state of Florida, and Mexico, does not appear to be related to the current outbreak. Additionally, there is no evidence hydroponically- and greenhouse-grown romaine is related to the current outbreak."

The labeling will new identify the origin of the romaine based on harvest region, along with the date of harvest.

November 20, 2018 from the CDC:

CDC is advising that U.S. consumers not eat any romaine lettuce, and retailers and restaurants not serve or sell any, until we learn more about the outbreak. This investigation is ongoing and the advice will be updated as more information is available.

• Consumers who have any type of romaine lettuce in their home should not eat it and should throw it away, even if some of it was eaten and no one has gotten sick.
  • This advice includes all types or uses of romaine lettuce, such as whole heads of romaine, hearts of romaine, and bags and boxes of precut lettuce and salad mixes that contain romaine, including baby romaine, spring mix, and Caesar salad.
  • If you do not know if the lettuce is romaine or whether a salad mix contains romaine, do not eat it and throw it away.
  • Wash and sanitize drawers or shelves in refrigerators where romaine was stored. Follow these five steps to clean your refrigerator.
• Restaurants and retailers should not serve or sell any romaine lettuce, including salads and salad mixes containing romaine.
• Take action if you have symptoms of an E. coli infection:
  • Talk to your healthcare provider.
  • Write down what you ate in the week before you started to get sick.
  • Report your illness to the health department.
  • Assist public health investigators by answering questions about your illness.

Whole genome sequencing (WGS) results showed that the E. coli O157:H7 strain isolated from ill people in this outbreak is closely related genetically to the E. coli strain isolated from ill people in a 2017 outbreak linked to leafy greens in the United States and to romaine lettuce in Canada. The current outbreak is not related to a recent multistate outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 infections linked to romaine lettuce. People in the spring outbreak were infected with E. coli O157:H7 bacteria with a different DNA fingerprint.

Statements from various kosher certified lettuce companies:

• Statement from Little Leaf Farms that is certified as kosher by the KVH:
  "In light of today’s Romaine recall, we’d like to assure you that ALL of our lettuce is completely clean and safe to eat. Food safety is our top priority & our growing process is a state of the art hydroponic greenhouse which results in a product that is completely safe to enjoy."
• Statement from Bodek Kosher that their produce is SAFE to eat:
• Statement from Pos'Tiv and Kosher Gardens: