Snack foods have complex, often vague lists of ingredients that can make it hard to determine whether they are kosher. "Natural and artificial flavors" could refer to many different ingredients, both kosher or not. There are even some oils that can be extracted from non-kosher animals or from plants. Fortunately, there is an easy way to tell for sure that certain snacks are kosher.
Instructions
1. Learn what kosher means. Kosher foods are foods permitted by traditional Jewish dietary law. They cannot contain both milk and meat products and cannot contain pork, shellfish or other prohibited animals. In addition, any animals have to be slaughtered in a specific way under the supervision of a rabbi.
2. Learn what foods are kosher. Fruits and vegetables are always kosher, as are unprocessed fish with fins and scales (shellfish are not kosher). Many snack foods are kosher in theory, however they may not be in practice. If they are prepared using machinery that also prepares non-kosher food, they are not kosher. In addition, people who keep the laws of kashrus very strictly will not buy meats, fish or any other animal products in non-kosher stores, because those animals may come into contact with non-kosher foods.
3. Learn about Rabbinic supervision. There are several rabbinic councils that certify that foods are kosher. They supervise every stage of the preparation to make sure that it does not involve any non-kosher ingredients or come into contact with non-kosher foods. Because of the supervision required, this typically raises the cost of kosher foods.
4. Look at the package for the symbol of one of the kashrus certification organizations. The Union of Orthodox Rabbis is the most common certification board. It has a U inside an O as its symbol. The Organized Kashrus Laboratories is also quite common. Its symbol is a K inside an O. Follow the link below for some of the other organizations and their symbols.
5. Learn that meat and dairy snacks cannot be mixed. A snack with an "M" or the word "meat" beside the kosher symbol has meat in it. A snack with "D" or "dairy" has milk products. Meat and dairy snacks can not be combined, even if both are kosher.
6. Learn about Passover dietary restrictions. On Passover, Jews are prohibited from eating wheat, leavening and several other ingredients. Food that can be consumed during the holiday is labeled "Kosher for Passover."
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