My Machberes - The kashrus of chickens,Rabbi Gershon Tannenbaum

Cracow, Poland, Early 1600's

Two orphans, both nephews and apprentices of a Cracow kosher butcher, left their oppressive apprenticeships and began their own kosher meat enterprise. Both unlearned, they had developed a secret scheme, wherein they successfully substituted non-kosher meat for kosher meats. Their prices were lower than the other Cracow kosher butchers, who were ultimately driven out of business. The years passed, and the two prospered. They became respected members of the community. They were charitable, admired and esteemed by the whole community. Devout homes felt privileged to patronize the partners. Their meats were considered kosher beyond question.

Their children entered into marriages with leading families. Their sons-in-laws were Torah scholars. One day one of the two butchers heard his son-in-law discussing the harsh retribution that Heaven inflicts, in the World-to-Come, upon those who cause another Jew to eat non-kosher foods. Shocked by the severity of the punishments, he reflected upon what he had done. He shared his fears and trepidation with his partner, who also was overtaken by panic.

The two confessed their iniquity and sought the counsel of Rabbi Noson Nota Shapiro (1585-1633), Rav of Cracow and revered author of Megaleh Amukos. Their sin of kosher food fraud shook the Cracow Jewish community, as well as all Jews everywhere. Jewish history records few such measurable deceptions in kosher foods. What happened in Cracow stands out.

New York City, 1880's

The arrival of Torah giant Rabbi Jacob Joseph, zt"l (1840‑1902), in 1888 to serve as chief rabbi of New York, resulted in an open war against those who sold meat whose kashruth was questionable. The battles were fierce, and the chief rabbi sacrificed his health in the struggle. Prior to his arrival, meat sold as kosher had questionable certifications. Personally knowing theshochet (ritual slaughterer) or the vendor as being a truly pious person was considered the best and only guarantee of the meat's kashruth. The chief rabbi saw beyond facades and sought to bring order to the kosher meat market. Ultimately, his strenuous efforts succeeded to a great degree.

Rabbi Joseph had ordered a shochet removed from Hi-Grade Kosher Meats, but that particular business establishment refused. The ensuing battle resulted in New York City codifying laws to safeguard kosher clientele, that became state law shortly thereafter. New York State's kosher laws, enacted more than 100 years ago, greatly served to protect kosher consumers until the law was recently (2004) found unconstitutional and was rewritten. The present Kosher Law Enforcement agency, a division of New York State's Department of Agriculture and Markets, is headed by Rabbi Luzer Weiss.

Monsey, 2006

Late Wednesday evening, August 30, the locked freezer of Shevach Quality Meats at 126 Maple Avenue, Monsey, NY, a tenant of Hatzlacha Groceries, was broken into by the proprietors to determine whether the meats being sold by Shevach were kosher. Shevach had been renting retail space within Hatzlacha, a popular Monsey supermarket. What the proprietors of the supermarket found and saw made their blood turn cold.

Shevach Quality Meats had begun operating at Hatzlacha more than 10 years ago and offered meats from many of the devoutly-observant slaughterhouses, including Belz, Empire, Kiryas Yoel, Meal Mart (Nirbatur), Satmar Meats (Meal Mart), and Vineland, all of which are unquestionably glatt kosher.

Shevach's proprietor was held in high regard within the close-knit Monsey observant community. He served as baal koreh (Torah reader) at a prominent congregation. Shevach's owner gave the daily Daf Yomi Talmud shiur (lectures) there every morning. In addition, he also served the shul as a shaliach tzibbur (prayer leader) during the Yomim Noraim (High Holy days). He is on the board of a prominent Monsey yeshiva and chaired the annual fund-raising event of another Monsey yeshiva.

He married into a highly-regarded family and has eight children. He married off five of the eight children to members of distinguished families. All are without blemish. The hechsher, kosher certification, of Shevach's establishment was provided by a greatly respected senior rav.

In the past, questions had arisen regarding meat without kosher certification seals delivered by Shevach to caterers and commercial establishments. When the mashgichim (kosher supervisors) complained, they were advised by the certifying rabbi and other rabbis that Shevach must be given the benefit of the doubt because of his good reputation and that the deliveries should be accepted. Nevertheless, there were instances, though very few in number, where mashgichim either resigned or declined to accept the meat deliveries.

One of the owners of Hatzlacha is a brother-in-law of a key officer of Kiryas Yoel Meats, which is the sales arm of the Kiryas Yoel Beis Hashechita (slaughterhouse). Hatzlacha was unofficially advised that Kiryas Yoel Meats had stopped selling chickens to Shevach several weeks earlier due to late and non payments. Nevertheless, Kiryas Yoel chickens, clearly labeled, continued to be plentiful on Shevach's refrigerated display shelves.

In recent months, the number of inquiries on the part of Shevach's customers increased as to why his meats were not as salty as before. In particular, chicken soups cooked with chickens purchased at Shevach's were found to lack the traditional salty taste of kosher. In response, Shevach's owner claimed that Kiryas Yoel Meats were using a new low sodium salt in order to provide healthier chickens. Sometimes the response would be that Kiryas Yoel Meats was cutting back on the amount of salt used to the absolute minimum required by kosher law because of costs, or that inferior salt was being used by Kiryas Yoel.

The inquiries and complaints recently mushroomed into a cloud of question marks. In particular, an unnamed woman, a recent ba'alas teshuva, remarked that the chickens from Shevach suspiciously reminded her of the non-kosher chickens she had consumed in the past. Nevertheless, Shevach continued to be reckoned as a reliable source of kosher meats. Others complained of sometimes finding some of the chicken's innards still fully attached, whereas the innards must be completely removed in order to properly salt the chickens in accordance with kosher law.

Mordechai Greenzweig, one of the owners of Hatzlacha, having heard the many grumbles, and now knowing that Kiryas Yoel had stopped shipping to Shevach, was stunned on that Wednesday to see an ample supply of Kiryas Yoel chickens, clearly labeled as such, on Shevach's refrigerated display shelves. Discussing the matter with his concerned partners, the decision to act was made. Late that night Hatzlacha's owners broke into the locked freezers used by Shevach.

They found boxes and boxes of raw chickens without any indication that the contents were kosher. Unlike kosher chickens, the unmarked chickens were completely free of feathers and stubble. Since kosher chickens are not rinsed in hot water nor treated with chemicals prior to salting, feather removal is never complete. Non-kosher chickens are almost totally free of feather stubs and have a markedly different color. The chickens in Shevach's boxes also still had their innards intact.

Shevach's certifying rabbi was immediately called, as were two independent expert butchers. The butchers examined the chickens, and for an absolute determination, tasted the outer skins for any residue of salt. The certifying rabbi summoned Shevach's owner who arrived shortly thereafter seemingly unconcerned. When confronted with the non-kosher chickens, he claimed that they were old stock he purchased from Kiryas Yoel a while back. When the dates on the boxes showed the purchase was recent, long after Kiryas Yoel ceased shipping to him, he unconvincingly claimed they were off-the-books from Kiryas Yoel - a pure fiction. He then claimed that the chickens were kosher but without labels because he purchased them on the black or off markets, neither of which exists.

Failing to come up with any reasonable explanation, he admitted that the chickens came from a non-kosher source but that was because the kosher meat producers refused to send him merchandise. He claimed that he had falsified kosher offerings only for the past few days. Everyone present sadly realized that a scandal of major proportions was unfolding in front of them. Initially, the certifying rabbi accepted that the non-kosher substitutions had taken place only for a few days. However, he later agreed with the general assumption that the deceptions had been ongoing for years.

Thursday morning, Hatzlacha Supermarket opened and its owners were shocked to see that Shevach Meats was open for business, with merchandise on its racks, as though the previous night's unmasking never happened. Hatzlacha quickly programmed their computers to refuse for sale any product from Shevach. The certifying rabbi posted a sign acknowledging that meats purchased in the previous two days must be considered non-kosher. Because of the ensuing turmoil, Shevach closed his facilities and left.

That Thursday evening, shocked rabbis of Monsey gathered to discuss the matter. The certifying rabbi and the synagogue rabbi knowing Shevach's owner on a personal level, still felt that the kosher deceptions had to be very limited. Other rabbis screamed that if Shevach's presumption of trust was compromised, then that compromise was retroactive to the very first day he began doing business almost 11 years ago. In particular, Rabbi Menachem Meir Weissmandl, Monsey Nitra Rav, maintained that everyone who had purchased or used meats from Shevach must now kasher (kosher through proper methods) their pots, pans, tableware, and flatware. Rabbi Weissmandl issued a public letter to that effect on Friday morning.

The consternation amongst Monsey residents was overwhelming. Feelings of shock and outrage enveloped the community. The thousands and thousands of Jews of Monsey and environs were thrown into an uproar. Monroe residents quickly realized that the Kiryas Yoel meats that they were purchasing from Shevach at reduced prices were treif (non-kosher). Large families that thought they were saving money now had to contemplate what had to be kashered and how. Shuls in Monsey quickly set up facilities for kashering pots, pans, and flatware. All rabbis in Monsey were consulted by their individual congregants and each particular item's usage had to be reviewed in deciding if and how the item could be kashered.

On Tuesday evening, September 5, a proclamation was issued. Twenty-eight rabbis were its signatories. They were (in Hebrew alphabetical order): Rabbi Mordechai Chaim Auerbach, Beis Midrash Shaarei Tefilah; Rabbi Yosef Yisroel Eizenberger, Skverer Dayan; Rabbi Eliezer Chaim Blum, Kasho Rebbe; Rabbi Don Blumberg, Beis Midrash Ohel Yaakov; Rabbi Shlomo Mordechai Breslauer, Khal Beis Tefilah; Rabbi Moshe Green, Yeshiva of Monsey; Rabbi Moshe Diamond, Khal Zichron Be'er; Rabbi Avrohom Yaakov Horowitz, Khal Dzikov Meletz; Rabbi Chaim Yehoshua Halberstam, Monsey Satmar Rav; Rabbi Yisroel Hager, Monsey Vishnitzer Rav; Rabbi Ben Zion Wosner, Beth Din Shevet Levi; Rabbi Menachem Meir Weissmandl, Monsey Nitra Rav; Rabbi Betzalel Tovia Wattenstein, Belzer Dayan; Rabbi Shraga Feivel Zimmerman, Khal Bnei Ashkenaz; Rabbi Yisroel Meir Teitelbaum, Khal Ateres Rosh; Rabbi Yosef Templer, Khal Derech Emes; Rabbi Avrohom Chaim Feifer, Kehilas Beis Avrohom; Rabbi Menachem Fisher, Vienner Dayan; Rabbi Shlomo Ben Zion Kokus, Khal Zichron Mordechai; Rabbi Zvi Hersh Rabinowitz, Monsey Bobover Rav; Rabbi Moshe Rosner, Monsey Pupa Rav; Rabbi Chaim Yehuda Leibish Rottenberg, Khal Netzach Yisroel Foreshay; Rabbi Dovid Shmuel Riviat, Beis Midrash South Monsey; Rabbi Chaim Shabbos, Khal Knesset Yisroel; Rabbi Yechiel Steinmetz, Monsey Rav; Rabbi Chaim Shraga Feivel Shneibalg, Khal Avreichim; amd Rabbi Meshulem Noson Spiegal, Khal Tefilah LeMoshe.

The proclamation had since received additional signatures. In addition, the certifying rabbi has retracted his first letter, expanding the time of purchase of meat to be considered as non-kosher to "years." The synagogue rabbi, finding no remorse on part of Shevach's owner, banished him from his shul. All Shevach's facilities at Hatzlacha have since been dissembled. Hatzlacha has recalled all Shevach's meats sold there and are giving, at their own expense, a full refund. No meat sales will be made at Hatzlacha for the immediate future.

Many kashering stations have been set up at shuls in Monsey. The largest kashering operation is at Hatzlacha. Rabbi Eliezer Yichezkel Landau of Beis Midrash Edeleny and Rabbi Yosef Ber Einhorn of the Vishnitzer Beis Midrash are overseeing public kashering at Hatzlacha. The Kiryas Yoel community has delegated several of its rabbis and kollel members to be at Monsey's kashering stations to answer any questions and to assist in the sometimes complicated procedures. Monsey's volunteer Chaverim organization is controlling traffic and parking at the stations.

The Skverer community is providing all kashering stations with fire resistant gloves as well as fire resistant boots. The Glauber brothers, at Glauber's Bakeries, are providing light refreshments. Glauber's is also providing facilities for those needing to "burn" pots and pans. The many kashering stations have posted signs of their hours of operation. However, almost every kashering station is crowded, running late, and extending into late nights.

As we go to press, the OU and the Hisachdus Horabbonim, both of which had no part in the Shevach affair, are individually calling emergency meetings to revise procedures so that such a recurrence should never happen again. Rumors abound as to civil law suits as well as civil and criminal investigations, some that may overlap into other areas of the kosher food industry. Regardless, all rumors, insinuations, etc., must be discounted, and ignored, in anticipation of official findings.

Questionable Find

On Monday morning, September 11, an abandoned suitcase was found outside Hatzlacha. The Rockland County bomb squad is treating the suitcase with the utmost suspicion. "They X-rayed the suitcase and determined it was not a danger," Spring Valley police Sgt. Thomas Martin said. "It was some socks and a metal pill box." It was unclear how much further detectives might investigate the case.

The scare started when an owner of the Hatzlacha Grocery on Maple Avenue noticed the abandoned suitcase on the sidewalk and called police. With that kosher-meat scandal in the air, the owner did the right thing by calling police, Sgt. Martin said. "I know that people are upset about the non-kosher meats, but what connection there is to that, I don't know," he said. "We have it here," Martin said of the suitcase. "If no one shows up for it, we will probably throw it away."

Fasting

On a related note, Hatzolah issued a statement regarding those who expressed a desire to fast for their unknowingly having consumed treifos that they consult with their rav.

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My Machberes - The kashrus of chickens , Rabbi Gershon Tannenbaum