K A S H R U T . C O M_©

June 3, 2026 from Jerusalem Post:

"The Knesset passed in the first reading a bill to cancel the 2021 kashrut reform on Tuesday evening, shortly before the Knesset is expected to dissolve, in a move that could prevent Israel’s official kashrut certification market from opening to broader competition.

"The vote passed 49-34.

"The bill targets a reform approved in 2021 but largely stuck in limbo since. The reform was designed to move Israel’s kashrut system away from one controlled almost entirely by the Chief Rabbinate and local rabbinates, and toward a regulated market in which private kashrut bodies could also issue official certificates.

"That broader market never fully materialized.

"According to the Competition Authority, because the reform has not been fully implemented, official kashrut certification for food businesses remains controlled by local rabbinates. A business seeking basic kashrut certification must generally receive it from the local rabbinate in the city or area where it operates.

"The authority noted that even businesses seeking stricter certification, such as Badatz, are still required to receive certification from the local rabbinate.

"The authority noted that even businesses seeking stricter certification, such as Badatz, are still required to receive certification from the local rabbinate.

"The reform sought to address the problem by having licensed kashrut corporations employ the supervisors, rather than the supervised businesses. It was also meant to apply to imported products, allowing private kashrut bodies to certify imports and potentially reduce kashrut costs in import channels.

"One part of the reform did take effect: local religious councils were allowed to issue kashrut certification outside their own municipal areas. That was meant to create immediate competition between local rabbinates and give businesses alternatives to their own local rabbinate, particularly where local kashrut monopolies were viewed as especially problematic.

"But shortly after Religious Services Minister Michael Malchieli of Shas entered office in December 2022, he moved to delay the reform’s broader implementation.

"In practice, that left the reform largely dormant: local rabbinates were legally able to certify businesses outside their own areas, but the option was not widely used, and the core mechanism of licensing private national kashrut bodies did not materialize.

"The timing of the first-reading vote carries procedural significance. A bill that has passed first reading may be eligible for continuity in the next Knesset, allowing the next parliament to resume the legislative process from that stage rather than beginning again from scratch."