02 Jul HASHGACHAH AND HECHSHEIRIM PART 1

Q. If a Jew owns a
store, why does it
need a hashgachah?
Isn’t there a
concept of eid echad
ne’eman b’issurim,
which means
that we believe
one who testifies
by prohibitions
that something is permitted? If the
storeowner tells us the food is kosher,
shouldn’t that be enough?
A. There is a concept of eid echad ne’eman
b’issurim, which in our case means that if a
Jew says something is kosher, it is kosher.
It seems, then, that we would not need a
hechsher on a store with a Jewish owner. We
know that when eating in someone’s home,
we may believe him that the food is kosher.
However, this is not the case when dealing with
a store. When one’s livelihood is involved,
we don’t follow the rule of believing another
person. There is a powerful yetzer hara to cut
corners and get away with serving something
that is not ideal.
Furthermore, the owner of the store may not
be able to be in the store all the time, so the
concept of eid echad no longer applies. In
addition, mistakes are inevitable and happen
often. If, for example, an item was ordered
that costs less than the usual price, who will
double-check that the correct kosher item
came in?
In past years, most food was produced in
the home. People didn’t buy prepared foods
that contained so many ingredients and
preservatives. This makes the field of kashrus
so much more complex.
Q. What is the deal with repackaged
foods found in a local supermarket?
A. Supermarkets often order items in bulk
and repack it in smaller containers, placing a
sticker with the hechsher that was on the item

before it was repackaged. This is very cost-
effective for the supermarket.

If the item in question is individually wrapped
(such as hard candy, taffy, or chewing
gum), there is no concern. It is advisable to
purchase these items only from stores that
have a reliable hechsher supervising the
repackaging. This verifies that they are indeed
packing the product stated on the repackaging.
Many consumers opt to only purchase loose
products from merchants whose entire store is
properly certified by a reliable kosher agency.
With such certification, the kosher status of
the repackaged product, as well as any other
product in the store that it could come in
contact with, can be assured.
Q. In Eretz Yisrael, it’s common
for women to sell homemade baked
goods or cater meals to support their
husband’s learning. However, due to

the nature of this business, there is
no hashgachah. Is it permitted to buy
from such a business, or should one
only buy from home businesses that
have a hechsher?
A. Some poskim say that if one knows that
the person making the food follows halachah,
then these products can be purchased without
a hechsher. On the other hand, an enactment
put in place years ago states that one should
not buy any product from an individual, even
if he is careful with kashrus, unless he has a
hechsher.
In 2022, many leading rabbanim said that
the practice of selling food products without
a hechsher from one’s home must be
discontinued.[5] This is not good news for
those with home-based business, yet there
are ways to obtain a hechsher at reasonable
rates, albeit not from the larger kashrus
agencies. Those who wish should look into it.
Nonetheless, there are poskim who are lenient
and permit the purchase of products without a
hechsher from home-based businesses.
Q. Why are some hechsherim widely
accepted while others are not?
A. National kashrus agencies invest a lot of
work to ensure that all of their plants meet
strict kosher requirements. Mashgichim visit
their facilities on a constant basis. All of their
ingredients and products are entered into a
database and checked when the mashgiach
visits. In addition, ingredients arrive at the
plant in tankers. Were there any non-kosher
ingredients in these tankers? Bulk records
and truck wash receipts are checked to
ensure that everything is kosher. Office staff
enters new ingredients and new data that
come into the office. Each ingredient used
by the company must be checked against
the database to make sure it’s kosher and
that the manufacturer is from a well-known
hashgachah. Questions constantly arise, and
the acceptable hashgachos have a beis din or
rabbinic authority to whom these questions
are presented for guidance.
With a national hashgachah, there are
personnel and employees to deal with the
many issues that arise. There are over 1,400
hashgachos, and many of them do not have the
manpower to supervise such large facilities.
We will not comment on which hashgachos
are acceptable and which are not. However,
Hebrew lettering on an item does not mean
that it is from a reputable hashgachah.
In addition, besides for the policies in place
with a hechsher, how good the hashgachah
is in implementing these policies is the

difference between an acceptable and non-
acceptable hechsher. The hechsher may also

implement policies that one does not deem
acceptable.
Q. What is the difference between a
specific rabbi certifying products and
a national hechsher?
A. When a hechsher is given to a product, the

one who is doing the certification must take
into account many factors before deciding
to give a hechsher. Often, questions arise
and it must be determined how to proceed.
When one is giving a hechsher on a store or
a product, and he is the sole person involved,
he has no one to bounce off his doubts about
a specific product. Instead, he can decide on
his own how to resolve his query and give
the hechsher. When dealing with a national
hashgachah, there are discussions between
rabbanim as to whether a specific hechsher
should be granted.
In addition, quite often when one rabbi gives
a hechsher, it can be on a lower level than a
national hechsher since the ingredients used in
a factory may need to be researched. In many
cases, a rabbi working alone does not have the
ability or resources to do this.
Q. We all know that there is no rabbi
sitting in the factories all day (except
for special runs). If so, how is the
hashgachah making sure the products
are kosher?
A. The way the hashgachah works in a factory
setting is that a field rabbi visits the facility
either once or twice a month. If it’s a factory
that is very sensitive in regard to kashrus (i.e.,
it uses ingredients that may be problematic),
sometimes the rabbi will be at the plant daily.
Obviously, when the rabbi is away from the
plant they know he will not come back and
can potentially do as they please. However,
this is not a concern.
Harav Yisroel Belsky zt”l discussed the
halachah of “yotzei v’nichnas” — when there
is a non-Jew in a Jew’s house, the Jew should
go out and come in. This is not the basis for
how commercial hashgachah works. When
the non-Jew’s business is focused, to some
extent, on the kosher market and he knows
that if he gets caught he will lose that entire
opportunity, the visitation requirements are
less stringent than those relating to a Jew
walking in on a non-Jew in his home. When
the rabbi comes into a factory unannounced
(which is the method in the United States),
it creates a mirsas (fright) of the non-Jew
fooling around with the kashrus.
It should also be noted that the rabbi’s plant
visits must be on an erratic schedule. At
times they should be twice in the same day,
on a weekend, or not during regular business
hours (assuming the company is open). If the
company sees a pattern that the rabbi always
comes on a Monday morning or always waits
a few weeks before returning, the rabbi is
no longer creating the mirsas required for a
certified factory.
European hashgachos tend to operate with a
different model. Although they reserve the
right to make unannounced visits, they find
that companies feel that anyone who comes
without an appointment does not trust them
and are insulted that the rabbi is trying to
catch them doing something wrong. A rabbi
who informs the company that he will be

coming on a specific day does not create
mirsas. However, visits to European plants
are quite different from visits to American
plants. When a rabbi visits an American
factory, he may have limited time at each visit
although there are many visits throughout the
year. However, European hashgachos send
highly qualified personnel a few times each
year to spend hours or days auditing all of the
company’s paperwork, which their American
counterparts don’t do.
Q. How often does the rabbi visit a
restaurant or store?
A. Many of the larger hechsherim require a
rabbi to be in the store on a constant basis.
Sometimes, depending on the situation, they
allow the owner to act as a mashgiach for part
of the time. In some out-of-town communities
where it may be harder to find competent
mashgichim, they may allow the owner to
act in this capacity on a more consistent
basis. The norm in the industry of reputable
hechsherim is to visit a store once a week, to
make sure the mashgiach or owner is doing
what he is supposed to be doing as far as
kashrus is concerned. However, an ice cream
shop or coffee shop, where there is not much
going on, would require monthly visits by an
inspecting rabbi.