Kosher Products From Other Countries That Should Be Imported To the US

[henche]

If it has allergy warnings and doesn't say milk explicitly as an ingredient, it would list it as an allergen.

Would the OU give a hecsher to something with pigs milk?

Of course not. But they don't actually verify that the "milk" is cows milk, whereas the people making the allergy label do know what it is.

[ushdadude]

Of course not. But they don't actually verify that the "milk" is cows milk, whereas the people making the allergy label do know what it is.

Who says they don't verify the milk? It's not one of there items that is accepted automatically. That still wouldn't be enough to consider it CY because they don't supervise the actual milking.

[kangarruu]

Anyone ever have Tim Tams the Australian cookie made by Arnott's? They're kosher in Israel and I heard rumors of kosher imports in the US but haven't actually gotten my hands (mouth?) on any. Tim Tams + coffee = gastronomic explosion

[henche]

Who says they don't verify the milk? It's not one of there items that is accepted automatically. That still wouldn't be enough to consider it CY because they don't supervise the actual milking.

I can't find the list of schedule A ingredients, but I'm betting milk is on it. Certainly nobody who eats cholov stam ever looks for a hechsher on milk.

[Dan]

-1
They are Pareve they are just made on Dairy equipment,
 close enough to Pareve for me (it never occured to me eat my Quaker Oatmeal Squares together with meat anyways)

If it were that poshut then the OU would still be writing OU-DE.
Chabad for one doesn't eat DE. Prob the same by other chassidim I'd imagine.

[henche]

If it were that poshut then the OU would still be writing OU-DE.
Chabad for one doesn't eat DE. Prob the same by other chassidim I'd imagine.

No idea why they stopped writing DE. They should write it and let people make their own determinations.

[BigDanFan]

If it were that poshut then the OU would still be writing OU-DE.
Chabad for one doesn't eat DE. Prob the same by other chassidim I'd imagine.

similar issue with the Trader Joe's chocolate chips...
Heard that the runs are pareve, however the semi-sweet bags all say OK-D
because there is no mashgiach supervised/approved method of cleaning after the dairy run
to assure that there is not a single dairy chip that gets in...
For allergens, they'd need to have the dairy warning, however, we are all missing out for over a year because there are no longer any more OK - pareve Trader Joe's c.chips...
(If 10,000 signatures would help, we could prob get that on DDF)

[aygart]

If it were that poshut then the OU would still be writing OU-DE.
Chabad for one doesn't eat DE. Prob the same by other chassidim I'd imagine.

No idea why they stopped writing DE. They should write it and let people make their own determinations.

I don't think the OU ever had a DE designation. This is for a few reasons. They feel that the only way to ensure that it doesn't have actual d is to do a full kashering. They also go according to the psak of R' Schachter that for those who are machmir it is a nat bar nat disura making the DE designation superfluous. This psak is concurred both by a letter the OU has from R' Efrati in the name of R' Elyashiv zt"l and in Igros Moshe YD 2 siman 31

[henche]

I don't think the OU ever had a DE designation. This is for a few reasons. They feel that the only way to ensure that it doesn't have actual d is to do a full kashering. They also go according to the psak of R' Schachter that for those who are machmir it is a nat bar nat disura making the DE designation superfluous. This psak is concurred both by a letter the OU has from R' Efrati in the name of R' Elyashiv zt"l and in Igros Moshe YD 2 siman 31

I was thinking more in terms of allowing it for those who eat cholov stam without waiting after fleishig.

[Dan]

we are all missing out for over a year because there are no longer any more OK - pareve Trader Joe's c.chips...

Speak for yourself, I still have cases in my basement

I don't think the OU ever had a DE designation.

-1

[ushdadude]

similar issue with the Trader Joe's chocolate chips...
Heard that the runs are pareve, however the semi-sweet bags all say OK-D
because there is no mashgiach supervised/approved method of cleaning after the dairy run
to assure that there is not a single dairy chip that gets in...

The issue wasn't with the manufacturing. It was with the packaging department. The same equipment used for the semi-sweet is used for dairy. The concern is that a dairy chip will get packaged with the semi-sweet chips. Even though this is unlikely and in any case it would be batul, te OK policy (as well as all reliable hechsherim) is not to allow bitul meikara to allow a pareve designation. I have heard that some Rabanim allow you to treat them as pareve still so AYLOR.

[BigDanFan]

Speak for yourself, I still have cases in my basement

+1
Yes, I still have 3/4 of case in my basement, too..
(Is your exp date also 03/2014?)

..actually, speaking for others bec I bought a few cases as well,
but won't last forever...
Like the idea of AYLOR, bec. I heard about the packaging being the issue - not the actual choc. chips.. so there's hope.. (Is it true that the OK wanted to certify the packaging process 1-2 runs per year to make it Pareve, but TJ's didn't see the need/sales drop-off, so they did not go for it?)

[aygart]

Definitely not for 15 years. Others do but not the OU.

[aygart]

I was thinking more in terms of allowing it for those who eat cholov stam without waiting after fleishig.

The first reason would still apply.

[BigDanFan]

The issue wasn't with the manufacturing. It was with the packaging department. The same equipment used for the semi-sweet is used for dairy. The concern is that a dairy chip will get packaged with the semi-sweet chips. Even though this is unlikely and in any case it would be batul, te OK policy (as well as all reliable hechsherim) is not to allow bitul meikara to allow a pareve designation. I have heard that some Rabanim allow you to treat them as pareve still so AYLOR.

any way to have the packaging department allow/pay for one run per year with OK supervision to allow for all pareve chips and no risk of dairy?
will help many, even beyond the CY crowd: Shabbos meals, desserts, and those with milk allergies, etc..

[cozmohoot]

Trader Joe chips so much better than other brand chocolate chips...?

[henche]

Trader Joe chips so much better than other brand chocolate chips...?

The pareve ones are, yes. Because they are really chocolate, and not "chocolate flavored chips"

[Dan]

Trader Joe chips so much better than other brand chocolate chips...?

Yes.

[BigDanFan]

Trader Joe chips so much better than other brand chocolate chips...?

+1
yes, can taste the quality in choc chip cookies,
and they melt better for dipping, making choc coated things, Real choc taste and quality, and doesn't turn white like other brands do..

[aygart]

any way to have the packaging department allow/pay for one run per year with OK supervision to allow for all pareve chips and no risk of dairy?
will help many, even beyond the CY crowd: Shabbos meals, desserts, and those with milk allergies, etc..

Kashering a chocolate plant is very difficult according to those who don't allow Kashering with cocoa butter.