Halls of Torah and Tefillah... and Kashrus

“The kiddush will be held in Rabbi Cohen’s shul, so I’m sure everything is fine.” Although Rabbi Cohen is the Mara d’Asra, there is a good chance he is uninvolved in the kashrus of the simchah hall associated with the shul. For several years, Rabbi Sholem Yehudah Fishbane, executive director of Association of Kashrus Organizations (AKO) and kashrus administrator for Chicago Rabbinical Council (cRc), has been working with his associates to develop a protocol for shuls to ensure acceptable hashgachah in their simchah halls. There are vast lifestyle discrepancies between members of shuls spread throughout the country. Because of this, coupled with the complexities of assigning responsibility for kashrus supervision, it took time for the AKO Shul Initiative to gain traction. Finally, the volunteers’ long, hard work has come to fruition, with the completion of a template for shuls to develop customized kashrus guidelines, which they can then implement to upgrade the standards in their kitchens. Rabbi Sholem Yehudah Fishbane by Rabbi Binyomin Zev Karman 18 July 2, 2025 “Over the years, we have discovered that although the standards of kashrus supervision in general have improved exponentially, there are three areas, namely summer camps, shuls and yeshivos, where improvement is warranted,” Rabbi Fishbane says. “The shul, which is the bedrock of the Jewish community, has been overlooked when it comes to hashgachah; kashrus professionals have banded together to offer their services free of charge to promote the necessary upgrades in this area.” In the first part of this series (“Keeping Camp Kitchens Kosher,” Parashas Shelach/June 18), Inyan explored the efforts of dedicated kashrus professionals to inspect camp kitchens and suggest improvements. In the second installment, Inyan examines the challenges related to shul kitchens and strategies for implementing higher standards of kashrus. Sample of a letter to be sent to a ba’al simchah informing of the hashgachah standards of the shul and simchah hall. 19 Rabbi Sholey Klein, kashrus administrator, ORB Kosher In the late 1950s, Harav Leib Malin, zt”l, Rosh Yeshivah of Beis Hatalmud, spent some time at Zucker’s Glen Wild Hotel during bein hazmanim. One day, Mr. Shmuel Zucker found Rav Leib wandering through the pantry and kitchen, inspecting the various ingredients on the shelves. When questioned by Mr. Zucker, Rav Leib explained that if people saw him eating in the hotel dining room, they probably assumed that he had checked out the establishment’s kashrus, and they were relying on him to ensure the food met the highest level of kashrus. “I feel an achrayus (responsibility) to check things out for myself so that people relying on me have what to rely on,” he explained. Although Mrs. Zucker prepared special vegetables for Rav Leib, according to his strict criteria, the Rosh Yeshivah wanted to make sure that the entire operation was up to the highest standards so as not to inadvertently mislead people. Indeed, he even traveled to Woodbourne and checked out the bakery from which the hotel purchased their bread and challos. “Some Rabbanim are under the impression that their job is limited to the beis haknesses, delivering shiurim and paskening she’eilos,” Rabbi Sholey Klein, the kashrus administrator of Orthodox Rabbinical Board (ORB) of Broward and Palm Beach Counties Florida (Boca) and a leading member of the AKO Shul Initiative committee says. “They are not necessarily aware if an affair is held in the simchah hall of their shul; 20 people presume that the Rav has signed off on its kashrus. One of the major concepts we have been working on is to establish a protocol for standards of kashrus, under the auspices of each shul’s Rav.” Rabbi Fishbane elaborates on the reasons Rabbanim are often uninvolved in the supervision of their shuls’ kitchens. “I served as a Rav for several years, and I can testify that a Rav’s time is consumed with his pastoral duties. This includes not only delivering shiurim and drashos but also visiting hospitals, being involved in shalom bayis and helping congregants with other family issues. Besides the time he spends, these duties are draining, leaving less energy for him to devote to areas not directly under his purview. “There are other factors that divert a Rav from getting involved in his shul’s kitchen: “Some do not understand the seriousness of the pitfalls, relying on the religious integrity of his kehillah to make sure everything is in order. While the members may be reliable people, the hazards of a kitchen inevitably raise concerns, and someone must accept responsibility for it. “Others, who may see the need for greater supervision, shy away from taking this on. ‘I can undertake only one or two battles with my baalei batim per year, and I do not want to pick a fight with their stomachs,’ one Rav quipped. “Furthermore, a Rav who is an employee of a board of directors may prefer to steer clear of taking on the board over this matter. “Finally, there are some Rabbanim who feel that if they cannot bring the supervision of kashrus up to perfection, they are unwilling to work on a partial upgrade. In the famous words of Winston Churchhill, ‘Perfection is the enemy of progress.’” As part of the Kashrus Awareness campaign, having taken guidance from AKO, Rabbi Fishbane focused on one locale, working with some 30 shuls in attempting to develop a minimum standard of supervision in their kitchens. “When we investigated what was taking place before we began, we discovered that many venues allowed caterers to bring in equipment they had rented from other establishments. Not only was there a problem of mixing milchigs and fleishigs, we actually found some who were renting equipment from nonkosher establishments!” Rabbi Fishbane reports. “In addition, unchecked produce was brought in, non-mevushal wines were used, despite having gentile waiters serving at the event, and homemade foods were served without any supervision. Amira l’akum, having non-Jewish workers perform prohibited work on Shabbos, was rampant. In many cases, while the Rav of the shul was an expert in Halachah, he was not a kashrus professional and was not attuned to what needs to be done in a commercial kitchen. “When we enter a kitchen, our antennas are up, looking for things that a non-professional would not take note of. We’ve seen these things dozens of times in the past, and we have solutions for them. Having a kashrus professional inspect a venue and offer his advice as to improving the supervision is essential. And once again, as with the camps, we are offering this service without charge,” Rabbi Fishbane stresses. Amira l’akum, having non-Jewish workers perform prohibited work on Shabbos, was rampant. In many cases, while the Rav of the shul was an expert in Halachah, he was not a kashrus professional and was not attuned to what needs to be done in a commercial kitchen. 21 July 2, 2025 6 Tammuz 5785 “Our objective is to set the shul up for success. we offer advice—not criticism.” In September 2023, AKO’s shul ommittee held a meeting in the offices of the Kof-K, where representatives of Agudath Israel, the Orthodox Union (OU), Young Israel, Hisachdus Harabbanim (CRC), Rabbinical Council of America (RCA) and representatives of Lakewood Rabbanim got together to plan a strategy for tackling this problem. Several ideas were forwarded to bring awareness to this issue, including establishing a template from which shuls could develop their individual kashrus standards. In addition, AKO kashrus professionals would make themselves available to be scholars-in-residence at shuls for a Shabbos shel kashrus, which would help educate and excite people about kashrus. A free consultation and assessment of the shul kitchen would be offered as well as assistance in implementing customized guidelines for each shul. “A bonus of a Rav and a shul establishing their 22 own guidelines with AKO’s assistance is that the Rav or people in charge can deflect much of the possible complaints and criticism,” Rabbi Fishbane explains. “They can now say, ‘I’d love to allow Tante Celia’s chalupchus to be served, but we have adopted the AKO guidelines, which precludes serving homemade foods.’” Another aspect of the program is involving the women of the shul. Many simchos are planned by the women; having them on board is a tremendous advantage. To accomplish this, AKO arranges a separate meeting for the n’shei of the shul to explain the need for the standards as well as to get their buy in and incorporate their suggestions. In preparation for an inspection, the Rav is presented with a questionnaire that includes 86 issues that could come up in a shul kitchen on which he must rule. Once that is completed, AKO asks the Rav to designate two shul members to be responsible for kashrus, assigning them appropriate, respectable titles. These appointees will be trained based on the Rav’s psakim, which will facilitate proper management of any guidelines. In the event that a new kitchen is being built, AKO will help design it, hardwiring the milchige/ f leishige work areas and other protection needed to ensure a high standard of kashrus. “We also try convincing the board to include responsibility for the kitchen’s kashrus in the Rav’s contract,” Rabbi Fishbane continues. “This is critical to maintaining the kashrus standards. Some Rabbanim may say, ‘I am Rav of the shul; what do I have to do with an outsider renting the hall for a vort?’ This is false, because when a person hears there is a simchah at Rabbi Friedman’s shul, he assumes Rabbi Friedman is in charge of the kashrus. We also recommend the Rav put on a proverbial apron to show that he takes his shul’s kashrus seriously. This will include occasional drop-ins to see that his guidelines are being followed.” To tackle the difficulty of tailoring a system for shuls in different locales and with different clienteles, AKO initiated what they refer to as the “five shul system” — it helped create a template that other shuls can follow and modify as they develop their own unique guidelines. Rabbi Nesanel Snow, kashrus administrator of Rabbinical Council of Bergen County (RCBC) Kosher Supervision based in Teaneck, New Jersey, is one of the leaders of the AKO Shul Initiative and explained the “five shul concept.” “One of the challenges we faced is that shuls are in different locales with diverse memberships; there is no one-size-fits-all template. It was important for us to get a sense of the disparity of the shuls and communities. For example, we can have a small shtiebel where everyone is comfortable eating at each other’s homes, versus a large shul with a catering hall. The variables are many, as opposed to restaurants, where basically all high-end meat eateries are more or less alike. “We began a pilot program in six communities around the country in which we had a kashrus professional introduce the program to five shuls in their area and get feedback. After many months of pushing, we succeeded in several communities. We began with the questionnaire to ascertain what works and then discussed and created guidelines. This helped develop buy-in from the shuls, as Rabbi Nesanel Snow presenting to the Rabbanim at the Agudah Convention about AKO’s new Shul Kitchen Kashrus Initiative  they felt we were developing it with them. The Rav would decide what position he had on certain issues and then we went over the guidelines line by line, modifying, inserting or omitting as necessary. Finally, we put the shul’s name on it, and they were ready to go. “To date, we have worked with 30 shuls to develop customized guidelines. Another nine shuls joined the program when we presented it at the Agudath Israel Convention in November 2024. With the template we created based on the five shul initiative, we are now equipped with a tool we can adapt for other shuls and implement on a national scale. “At times, we sense that some of the frummer “To date, we have worked with 30 shuls to develop customized guidelines.” 23 July 2, 2025 12 Adar 5785 shuls feel self-conscious about revisiting their kashrus standards,” Rabbi Klein shares, “but we are not looking to embarrass anyone. Our objective is to set the shul up for success; we offer advice—not criticism. “We will provide a shul with a standard operating procedure (SOP) for free, but the Rav and the members must realize that it is their responsibility to ensure quality kashrus in their shul’s kitchen; they need to step it up. We will be there to provide the know-how, but we cannot be there to push things through. Ultimately, it is up to the shul and the Rav to take ownership of their kashrus responsibilities.” Shuls who would like to take advantage of the AKO Shul Initiative should contact them via email at shuls@akokosher.org. Rabbi Yosef Eisen, Rav of Kollel Bnei Torah in Brooklyn and Rabbinic Administrator of the Vaad of The Five Towns and Far Rockaway. Rabbi Yosef Eisen, Rav of Kollel Bnei Torah in Brooklyn, has been a leading voice in the field of kashrus for decades. He served as a rabbinic administrator for the Orthodox Union (OU) and is currently the rabbinic administrator of the Vaad of The Five Towns and Far Rockaway. “When approached by Rabbi Fishbane to work with the shuls in Flatbush, I understood that the neighborhood had its own unique set of concerns that had to be satisfied for the project to be successful,” Rabbi Eisen says. “Flatbush has numerous shuls, several of which have simchah halls associated with them. The population of the neighborhood includes many people who are vigilant with their kashrus. We felt we had to aim for a high level that would be acceptable to all.” Although the Rabbanim are extremely busy with kehillah functions, their support for the project was overwhelming. “The Rabbanim spearheaded the campaign; they enlisted the help of trustworthy, dedicated baalei battim who undertook to work with us to create and implement the guidelines,” Rabbi Eisen says. “They are enthusiastic about upgrading and safeguarding the kashrus of their shuls and simchah halls. We successfully launched what we expect to become the accepted standard in all the neighborhood shuls.