MK Tal calls on Minister Kahana to open kashrut to Reform, Conservative rabbis

• Published date: 07 October 2021
• Author: JEREMY SHARON
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

Tal said it was insulting that the Religious Services Ministry's director-general had said there was no place for Reform and Conservative rabbis in Israel's kashrut system during a committee hearing on the legislation on Thursday.

Kahana and the government are advancing legislation through the budget arrangements bill that would abolish the Chief Rabbinate's monopoly over kashrut. It would allow independent kashrut supervision authorities to provide their services to food businesses, while the Chief Rabbinate would act as a regulator of the system.

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To establish a kashrut authority, however, it must be headed by a rabbi with qualifications from the Chief Rabbinate to serve as a municipal chief rabbi who has written approval from the Council of the Chief Rabbinate attesting to this qualification.

This would in practice exclude Reform and Conservative rabbis from establishing such kashrut authorities.

Tal is proposing an amendment to Kahana's bill that would remove the condition in the legislation stating that the rabbi seeking to establish a kashrut authority must have written approval from the Council of the Chief Rabbinate. In addition, his amendment proposes to add in the legislation a "Liberal Kashrut" standard to allow non-Orthodox rabbis to issue kashrut certificates.

"I'm proud to be part of this coalition, which is creating the kashrut reform, because the best answer to corruption is to create competition," Tal said. "But it still perpetuates the Orthodox monopoly. As someone...