In meetings today with Congressman John Klug, and Senator Judd Gregg’s staff, Dr. Mandell I. Ganchrow, President of the Orthodox Union and Jeff Wice, of New York State Assembly Speaker’s Sheldon Silver’s office offered new language in the proposed legislation called the Food and Drug Administration Reform Act that would protect local Kashruth enforcement laws. The Orthodox Union has been working closely with the legislators over these past months in order to prevent the enactment of legislation that would inadvertently preempt the ability of state and local governments to regulate the labeling of Kosher food products and to protect consumers.

Dr. Ganchrow said, “We commend both Senator Gregg and Congressman Klug who have been most forthcoming in the consideration of these issues in formulating the proposed legislation with language that deals with our concerns. We are deeply appreciative to NY State Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and his Legislative Assistant Jeff Wice for their hard work and legal investigation thus making possible for state and local Kosher food laws to remain intact and for local officials to be able to enact proper Kashruth legislation.”

“Nineteen states have kosher product labeling laws designed to protect consumers from fraudulent mislabeling. We strongly support those laws that inform consumers regarding the content of food products. These laws are designed to prevent improperly labeled products from being sold to unsuspecting consumers, including the Jewish community, the Muslim community, vegetarians, and many others who seek protection from consumer fraud in the area of Kosher food.”

As the premier Kashruth supervision organization, the Orthodox Union is the largest Kosher certifying agency in the world. The OU symbol provides assurance to consumers that the food products are in fact produced under proper supervision. At the present time the OU supervises close to 3000 plants in 54 countries and has over 150,000 products under its certification.

For additional information, please e-mail ipa@ou.org or call the IPA office at (212) 613-8128.

The OU’s IPA is anxious to work with you in the interest of making a difference for Klal Yisrael, so please be in touch and let us know how we can help you run a successful campaign. You can contact the Institute for Public Affairs at (212) 613-8128 or by e-mail at ipa@ou.org

Richard Stone
Chairman

Betty Ehrenberg
Executive Director