K A S H R U T . C O M_©

Metal Ware Recalls NESCO Coffee Bean Roasters Due to Fire Hazard

April 21, 2021 - from CPSC :

Coffee Bean Roasters have been recalled because the coffee bean roasters can overheat, posing a fire hazard.

The recall involves Model CR-04-13 Coffee Bean Roasters with a date code of 2520 or 3220 printed at the bottom right of the ETL Intertek label on the product and on the box. NESCO is printed in white on the black roasters.

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled coffee bean roasters and contact Metal Ware for a full refund or a refund in the form of a store credit. Metal Ware will provide consumers with free return shipping for the roasters. Upon Metal Ware’s receipt of the returned roaster, the consumer can choose between receiving a full refund of $85 or a refund in the form of a store credit in the amount of $100 for use at www.nesco.com.

Consumer Contact: Metal Ware Corporation toll-free at 888-993-9243 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. CT Monday through Friday, email at beanroaster@nesco.com, or online at www.nesco.com and click on RECALLS for more information.

The firm has received reports of 20 incidents of the coffee bean roasters overheating causing the plastic to melt, coffee beans to burn, and/or flames and smoke to emanate from the roaster. No injuries have been reported.

Sold At: Blains Supply and Burman Coffee Traders stores nationwide and online at www.bodhileafcoffee.com, www.burmancoffee.com, www.eveythingkitchens.com, www.facebook.com/keystonehousewares, www.farmandfleet.com, www.kohls.com, www.sweetmarias.com, and www.wayfair.com, from August 2020 through December 2020, for about $85.

Woman Dies From Allergic Reaction to Dairy Ice Cream at Meat Restaurant

April 15, 2021 - from Hamodia:

"A 23-year-old woman with a milk allergy died on Wednesday night after she was served dairy ice cream at a kosher meat restaurant in northern Israel."

"Police opened an investigation into the incident, shutting down the restaurant in Rosh Pinah and detaining five employees, including the owner and the chef, on suspicion of negligent homicide. The suspects were released to house arrest after law enforcement determined that they had not acted intentionally."

"The victim was later identified as Osher Deri, a”h, from the nearby town of Chatzor Haglilit."

"Deri was rushed to Tzfas’s Ziv Medical Center when she started feeling unwell after eating her dessert. Doctors were forced to declare her death shortly upon her arrival."

"An initial investigation found that the victim had ordered ice cream, assuming it was pareve as the restaurant would not serve dairy."

"The chef said that he had earlier noticed that they were out of ice cream and ordered a co-worker to run to the store and purchase more ice cream. However, the employee mistakenly bought dairy ice cream."

Danger of Shlissel Challah?

An old article but still relevant from May 3, 2019 from the Matzav.com:

"As is well known, there is a minhag to make shlissel challah for the Shabbos after Pesach. Shlissel challahs are best known as a segulah for parnassah, although there are other several reasons for baking a challah with a key in it. However, some have raised health concerns regarding this minhag. Keys have been found to leave behind unsafe amounts of lead, leading some to suggest that the practice of placing keys in challahs in making shlissel challah may present a danger."

"Brass is a soft metal, so lead is added to give keys more strength. Some keys have a silver-colored nickel coating over top the brass, but this wears away. Sucking on car keys is dangerous. Even handling car keys can leave lead on one’s hands. Not all keys are brass; some are aluminum and are lighter weight."

Court denies Tofurky appeal to Missouri meat label law

March 31, 2021 from FoodDive:

"The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the Missouri law that bans the use of the term "meat" for marketing products that do not come from livestock or poultry. The ruling supports a 2019 District Court ruling denying the request for a preliminary injunction by Tofurky, the Good Food Institute, Animal Legal Defense Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri.

• Missouri was sued in federal court the day before a state law went into effect which would ban plant-based and cell-cultured meat producers from using the words "meat," "beef," "chicken" and "sausages" on their labels, even if the terms "plant-based" or "vegan" are also used, Food Navigator reported.
• The plaintiffs are the Good Food Institute, Animal Legal Defense Fund, American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri and the plant-based brand Tofurky. Their complaint argues the new state law is unconstitutional and would criminalize the word "meat." They asked the court for a preliminary injunction to stop enforcement until the lawsuit is settled.
• The Missouri law — the first in the country — was passed in May as part of an omnibus agriculture bill and was supported by the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association as a way to reduce shopper confusion and protect local ranchers. The law includes language prohibiting "misrepresenting a product as meat that is not derived from harvested production [of] livestock or poultry." Violations would be subject to a $1,000 fine and a one-year prison term."

Tofurky sues Louisiana over plant-based meat labeling law

October 12, 2019 FoodDive:

• "Tofurky is the plaintiff in a federal lawsuit that claims a Louisiana state law prohibiting meat terminology on food not derived from slaughtered animals is unconstitutional. The lawsuit was jointly filed by the Good Food Institute and the Animal Legal Defense Fund."
• "Under the Louisiana law, plant-based meat companies can be fined up to $500 per product, per day for using terms including "burger" and "sausage." It was signed into law by Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards on June 11, 2019, and took effect Oct. 1. The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, which enforces the law, did not respnd to comment when contacted by Food Dive."
• "While several states have passed similar labeling laws targeting the plant-based meat industry, they have not held up well when challenged. A lawsuit in Mississippi got the state to change its labeling regulations. There are currently pending lawsuits about state labeling laws in Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri."
• "Considering the track record of state laws that seek to limit labeling for plant-based products, this lawsuit could have been predicted last summer when the law was first signed. Plant-based meat companies — in conjunction with partners including the Good Food Institute, Animal Legal Defense Fund, American Civil Liberties Union and Plant Based Foods Association — have been active in their opposition to laws they claim restrict their right to free speech."
• "According to reporting at the time, Louisiana's law was written and passed in order to protect the state's agricultural industry. Proponents also said they hoped to end consumer confusion."
• "The lawsuit argues there is no evidence of confusion, and that consumers understand products from manufacturers, including Tofurky, are clearly labeled as plant based."
• "Louisiana's law, however, goes further than just plant-based meat. It also prohibits anything that is not actually rice from having "rice" on its label, and would prohibit cell-based meat from being labeled as conventional meat."
• "Because the Louisiana suit and all the others about plant-based meat were filed in federal court, the outcome of this case may be determined relatively quickly. If any of the previous cases actually go to trial, the precedent will likely be applied to all of them — and future labeling laws regarding plant-based meat. States have not had the best track record on these laws — and federal lawmakers have been unsuccessful in getting a national law even considered — but the pattern may continue without a definitive legal precedent.'

A Brexit Passover food shortage is forcing the Jews of Ireland and Northern Ireland to work together

March 24, 2021 from the JTA

"Since 2016, it has become a staple of British and Irish political analysis to say that the tangled Brexit trade arrangements will push Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland closer together. Ultimately, it could lead to a United Ireland, some analysts say."

"his year, in the run-up to Passover, the two countries’ Jewish communities are showing one unusual sign of closer collaboration between the countries. Thanks to a Passover food shortage brought on in part by the post-Brexit trade agreement signed three months ago, holiday supplies are being closely coordinated between Dublin and Belfast, and Belfast’s Jews are traveling down to Dublin to collect products like matzah for Passover."

"Great Britain is normally the main supplier of kosher and kosher for Passover products for both the Irish and Northern Irish Jewish communities. But as part of the U.K.’s withdrawal from the European Union, new regulatory checks have been introduced on trade between Britain and the E.U., raising the cost of exporting British products into members of the European single market, like Ireland."

"Since it is part of the U.K., one would expect Northern Ireland to have maintained its ability to freely procure supplies from England and elsewhere. But under the so-called “Northern Ireland Protocol,” part of the Brexit agreement, Northern Ireland is to remain within the E.U.’s single market for goods as part of an attempt to keep the border between it and the Republic of Ireland open."

"So the Jews of Belfast have run into the same hurdles as their coreligionists to the south."

"London has introduced a temporary grace period in an attempt to ease disruptions by temporarily suspending some checks on imports into Northern Ireland, but the underlying difficulties have remained."

"The fortunes of the Belfast and Dublin Jewish communities have diverged in recent years. After decades of emigration, Belfast’s community has shrunk to below 100 members, the vast majority of whom are elderly.

"Across the border, Dublin’s Jews have benefitted from an influx of young Jews coming to work in the republic’s booming technology sector. For the first time since the 1950s, when Ireland was an unlikely source of kosher meat imports to Israel, the community is growing again. Current estimates place the number of Jews in Dublin at around 2,000."

"While Jewish communities continue to shrink and consolidate across the U.K. as populations condense into cities such as London and Manchester, cooperation might seem inevitable."