Dr.Hüseyin Kâmi BÜYÜKÖZER
“Within the complexity of the modern age in the production, packaging, transportation, storage and presentation chain of food, it is extremely important to provide safe nutrition to people with halal sensitivity.” With GIMDES’s Halal and Tayyib Food Certification, our country became the third country in the world to issue a ‘Halal Food’ certificate after Malaysia and Indonesia. Thanks to the Halal Food Certification services, which will be an important source of income for Turkey, the halal food inspection certificate fee that Turkish companies have to pay to foreign certification companies has also been eliminated.
Muslims are encouraged to prefer kosher certified products when they cannot find halal certified products. The definition and rules of Kosher, which are slightly similar to the halal food rules, are defined as follows; Kosher means suitable according to Jewish law. Examples of kosher include the forequarters of properly slaughtered cattle, fruits, vegetables, all fish with wings, all wines, all types of cheese, and gelatin.
The food equivalent of kosher is Trefah (unfit for use), meaning forbidden. Trefah literally means “torn apart by a wild animal.” Examples of the concept of Trefah include blood, pork, rabbits, shellfish, wild birds such as wild geese, and game birds.
There are three main rules for kosher.
a. Separation of meat and dairy products and the utensils and tools used in their preparation and serving. Meat and dairy products cannot be eaten at the same meal. (“You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk” – meat and dairy products shall not be eaten together.) (TOWAT)
b. Permitted foods: The following are permitted foods. Meat and poultry and foods derived from them. Milk and milk-based foods. Foods other than meat and dairy, such as eggs, grains, legumes, vegetables, fruits, poultry, and fish.
c. Preparation of the meal:
Kosher cattle or poultry must be slaughtered according to Jewish slaughtering rules and all blood must be drained. Kosher also includes roasting, soaking and salting. According to Jewish dietary laws, the sciatic nerve located in the back of cattle or sheep is forbidden. Since it is very difficult to pull the sciatic nerve out of the animal, Jews only eat the front parts (front legs and chest) of Kosher animals. The back part of the animal is not considered Kosher.
Passover: Jewish spring holiday celebrating the liberation of the Israelites from the Egyptians. No leavened food is eaten on this holiday. Wheat, barley, rye, oats and bulgur are not consumed on this special day. The house is completely cleansed of these five grains.
Other differences between Kosher and Halal are as follows:
a. Rabbits, shellfish, wild chickens, wild geese and ducks are halal animals according to Islam. These animals are forbidden according to Kashrut.
b. According to Islam, while all intoxicating drinks such as wine, liquor, etc., alcohol and drugs are haram, Kashrut considers wines as Kosher. For this reason, not every food with the Kosher symbol may be Halal.
c. Gelatin is considered Kosher regardless of its source. According to Islam, gelatin is haram if it is produced from animals such as pigs. For this reason, yogurt and cream (marshmallows) with the Kosher stamp may not be Halal.
d. Enzymes and yeasts produced from all animals, regardless of their source, are considered as secretions (pirsah b’almah) and are considered Kosher. In this case, all cheeses are also Kosher. However, Muslims have to look at the origin of the rennet. If the rennet (or enzyme) is produced from haram animals such as pigs or animals that have not been slaughtered according to Islamic methods, it is considered haram.
e. In Judaism, milk and meat products are not eaten at the same time. Likewise, the dishes and utensils used in preparing these foods are kept separately and are not mixed. There is no such distinction in Islam.
“O believers! Eat from the good things We have provided for you. And give thanks to Allah if you ˹truly˺ worship Him ˹alone˺.” (Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayat 172).
In summary, halal is a system of life that encompasses both worlds in Islam and regulates the life of a Muslim. Kosher is a chain of rules that determines the way of eating and drinking of a Jew. This distinction alone is an indication that Kosher may not be halal. Allah (swt) knows best.
