Sometimes a food item under rabbinical supervision claims on its package label not only to be under that supervision but also to contain only yashan grain, or to not contain sh'ruya, or to contain only chalav Yisrael, or to be m'vushal (if wine). I've always assumed that the agency whose certification mark appears on the package is also attesting to the other claim; but is that true, or does the certification mark only signify kashrus, with the other claims being only the manufacturer's?
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Similar: judaism.stackexchange.com/q/9798– msh210 ♦Commented Feb 25, 2013 at 5:00
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I'll bet that different agencies have different policies with respect to this issue. </serious> (Note that if the manufacturer opts to use the O-Cmon, the answer to this "Says who?" is naturally the same as the one regarding the kashrut.)– Isaac Moses ♦Commented Feb 25, 2013 at 16:16
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@IsaacMoses I titled this post with that hechsher in mind.– msh210 ♦Commented Feb 25, 2013 at 16:42
1 Answer
I e-mailed the Orthodox Union as follows:
If an OU-certified product claims to be yashan, or m'vushal, or non-gebrokts, or chalav Yisrael, or the like, then does the OU certify the product as having that status, or is that status only the manufacturer's own claim?
Their reply was, in summary, that if the claim is "connected to" (their words) the "OU" mark, then the OU certifies that the claim is true, but if the claim is elsewhere on the packaging or label, then the OU doesn't certify that the claim is true.
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There's an OU mp3 on cheese where they discuss a certain chumra regarding Jews adding rennet -- maybe a different stage than the main rennet, or with regards to cottage cheese? I don't remember. They said if the product is OU chalav yisrael, then customers expect this chumra as well, so the OU insists on it.– ShalomCommented Aug 7, 2013 at 11:14