Kashrut Policy of Neve Shalom

The Neve Shalom kitchen follows the rulings of the USCJ and the Rabbinical Assembly.

The “Standards for Synagogue Practice” of the United Synagogue affirm, “Recognizing kashrut as another basic tenet of Judaism, congregations shall take all steps necessary to ensure proper observance of kashrut at all functions on the premises of the synagogue and at functions away from the synagogue which are held under their auspices.”

As a congregation, we have one more reason for assuring the kashrut of foods we serve. We are a k’hillah k’doshah, a sacred community, and as such we must be welcoming and inclusive of members and guests who observe the dietary laws. Any individual or group using our facilities must adhere to our standards of kashrut. Our members and our guests  may have different interpretations of specific aspects of kashrut, but the synagogue must have one clear consistent policy. We trust that all of our members and friends, whatever their personal practice may be, are willing to observe these policies, no matter what their personal level of observance may be, so that any member of the Jewish community can feel comfortable eating in our building.

General Kitchen Rules

Food that does not meet Neve Shalom’s kashrut standards may not be brought into the building.

All wine served at the synagogue must be certified kosher(hechar).

Use of the kitchen is with written permission from the office. 

Chefs and assistants need to be familiar with and accept the kashrut standards for use of the Neve Shalom Kosher Kitchen

Because processed foods must contain kosher ingredients and must be prepared in a kosher way, all prepared or packaged food (including canned, frozen, baked, or foods otherwise changed from their natural state) as well as dairy products (yogurts, etc.) must bear kashrut certification from a recognized authority, such as the O-U or O-K. A list of symbols used by such authorities is attached to this policy. (Appendix A)

Why do foods need to be certified?  The United States’ FDA holds that a food label need not disclose ingredients if they are less than 2% of the product.  Hence, flavorings and colorings that might be less than 2% would not be listed on the package.  Those flavorings, colorings or spices  might contain non-kosher or animal ingredients.

As one may not trademark a letter of the English alphabet, the presence of the letter “K” is not a symbol for any kashrut certifying authority and is not, on its own, an acceptable mark of kosher certification. When there is a “K”, check with the Kitchen Manager or the rabbi if the “K” has a proper certifying authority to back it up. As of this date Kellogg’s products and Pepsi Cola, which both have only a “K,” are kosher.

A capital “P” on a product means kosher for Passover.

A lower case “p” means pareve.  Packages are most often marked with the word parve spelled fully out. 

Food preparation

Only one kind of meal- dairy or meat- is to be prepared at a time in the kitchen. Set-up, plating and  layout for presentation or serving are part of preparing the meal. Dairy and meat utensils are kept in separate locked areas in the pantry. Only one cabinet may be open at one time. Kitchen scheduling should be arranged through our Office Manager in order that dairy and meat meals will not be prepared at the same time.

Ovens may be used for only one kind (either meat or dairy) of food at a time. Ovens may be used for cooking meat or dairy food in sequence, after removing any visible food or crumbs, and wiping up any spills. Preference is to cook items tightly sealed (when possible), even when cooking in sequence. Stove-tops must be thoroughly cleaned by washing with appropriate surface cleaners before switching meal types.

Preparation areas: Stainless steel and other similar preparation surfaces are to be cleaned between uses by wiping them down with appropriate cleaners. When a meat meal is prepared in our kitchen, foil must be placed  on the entire counter. The surface may be uncovered only when it is a dairy meal. Before a hot pan is placed on a preparation surface, the surface must be covered with the correct (either dairy or meat) hot pads.

Fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, salt, sugar, spices, tea, and coffee  do not require kashrut certification.  (Group 1/Group A list)

All fruit and vegetables must be washed in the Neve Shalom kitchen and checked for bugs.

Milk does not require certification.

Soft drinks do require certification.  Most popular sodas are certified (Coca Cola, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Fresca, 7 Up, Canada Dry.)  There are many options here.

Fresh kosher fish (kosher species must have fins and scales) do not require rabbinic supervision, but must be rinsed thoroughly before being cooked. Swordfish and sturgeon do not meet our standard. 

Bagels – Plain bagels may be purchased anywhere as long as they are not pre-sliced, but sliced in the synagogue. This avoids the possible use of a tref knife to slice the bagels.  Augmented (seeded, raisin etc) or sliced bagels may be purchased from any fully kosher certified bakery (from the list of appropriate certifiers)

All cheeses must be certified kosher for public events like a community breakfast.  For personal use such as lunch for a preschool child the cheese need not be certified kosher but should be domestic cheese.

Eggs need to be checked for blood spots.

Products marked “non-dairy” by government standards may still be considered dairy under the rules of kashrut. Artificial creamers and dessert toppings must be marked pareve, as a “non-dairy” government designation alone is not adequate to assure that a food as to which items marked “non-dairy” may be served with a meat meal.

Dairy products do NOT need to be Cholov Yisrael.

Baked goods do NOT need to be Pas Yisrael.

Bringing in food from approved caterers.

Only caterers on Neve Shalom’s approved list may use the kitchen. All food preparation must be done at Neve Shalom or by an approved caterer in a rabbinically supervised kitchen. Otherwise, no cooked foods may be brought in from outside. Before entrance by an outside party, a registration form must be filled out and approved by the office. 

Only brand new utensils may be brought into the synagogue without explicit prior permission of the rabbi. However, the new utensils must remain in their original packaging. Our Office Manager should be shown the utensils in their packaging. Utensils may not be brought into the synagogue from home.

This list will be verified annually (every June).

As of August 1, 2023 those approved are:

Clark Deli King, 30 Clarkton Dr., Clark, NJ 0706    December 31, 2023

The Orchid, 455 Main St., Metuchen, NJ 08840    December 31, 2023

China Lee, 229 Raritan Ave., Highland Park, NJ 08904   December 31, 2023

Jerusalem Pizza, 231 Raritan Ave., Highland Park, NJ 08904   December 31, 2023

Bridge Turkish & Mediterranean Grill, 315 Raritan Ave., Highland Park, NJ 08904   December 31, 2023

Giddy’s Pizzeria, 233 State Highway 18 Suite 19, East Brunswick, NJ 08816   (Waiting for current letter/certificate to be emailed to me)

Shabbat.

No deliveries or cooking may take place on Shabbat. This means, for example, that UNSLICED bagels must be purchased and brought into the building on Friday.  Delivery of all items to be used must be made either before Shabbat on Friday afternoon (or afternoon before the holiday) or after Shabbat (or holiday) is over.

Utensils and food may not be removed from the premises/kitchen until Shabbat is over.

 All cooking for a meal to be served on Shabbat must be completed before Shabbat begins.

Already cooked food may be warmed (at 200°) on Shabbat. Please arrange with a custodian before Shabbat to turn on the oven to that temperature.

On a regular basis, the office manager will provide the custodial staff with written instructions on what needs to be done on Shabbat.

Chafing dishes may be shut down by the custodial staff as part of their regular duties.

A coffee maker may be set with an electric timer before Shabbat to make coffee or hot water for Shabbat morning.

The coffee maker may be plugged in on Shabbat morning by the custodial staff as part of their regular duties.

Meals.

 Meals may be either “dairy” or “meat” and must be consistent for the entire meal; pareve (neutral – i.e. – containing no meat and no dairy) foods may be served with either type of meal. All food and drink served before, during or after the formal meal (including hors d’oeuvres and dessert) are considered part of the meal and must be meat or dairy (corresponding to the remainder of the meal) or pareve.

Pareve

Pareve means foods that are neither meat nor dairy. Because of the complexities of food additives, this has become a difficult subject. Obviously, any foods served with a meat meal (or at a Friday night Oneg, since many people have meat meals), must be pareve.

All mixes, ingredients, or store-bought baked goods must have a hechsher and be labeled pareve. “P” does not mean pareve; it means kosher for Passover. PAREVE is spelled out entirely. Pareve is sometimes a small letter p,  An “OU” without a Dairy or Meat designation is considered Pareve.

“DE”, means made with Dairy Equipment. The ruling  is that such foods may not be eaten with a meat meal, but may be eaten before or after a meat meal without the usual waiting period. Foods that are being prepared with ingredients labeled DE should be prepared using dairy utensils, which will preserve their DE designation.

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Normative, mainstream certifications.

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Guidelines for the Observance of Kashrut for Events 

Which Take Place Outside of the Synagogue

Passed: 9/26/2017

Revised 6/30/2023

Rabbi Elliot Salo Schoenberg

Category One: Neve Shalom Events that Take Place in Public Spaces

1. Any event outside of the synagogue in which Neve Shalom is providing the food:
   All food should be kosher with appropriate supervision if at all possible. This includes but is not limited to celebrations or galas outside of the synagogue, meetings that take place off-premises, picnics and barbecues where we do the cooking, etc. (Please see Paragraph 3 below for examples of situations in which it might not be possible to provide kosher food.)

 

2. Any event outside of the synagogue at which we do not provide food but where we patronize other vendors to provide our members with food that they pay for themselves should still be kosher with appropriate supervision if at all possible. This could include but is not limited to field trips to New York or Philadelphia or other areas where kosher restaurants are accessible. (Please see Paragraph 3 below for examples of situations in which it might not be possible to provide kosher food.)

 

3. Some events at which kosher food might not be available are:

• Field trips either to areas that don't have access to kosher vendors or;

• Venues that don't allow outside food like sports bars, sports arenas, and amusement parks.

• In these cases, we will either ask families to provide dairy brown bag lunches or follow the best practices which are being explored by USY and express our expectations that our members will limit themselves to purchasing dairy, kosher varieties of fish, and/or vegetarian options.

• In one case, the Men's Club was able to work with a sports bar and ask that a special menu be prepared with only dairy and vegetarian options
• Ordering cold, dairy is the preferred option.

Category Two: Neve Sponsorship of Communal Events

1. When events are held in the larger Jewish community, Neve Shalom request that the food served will be kosher with appropriate supervision.  If that is not the case, Neve Shalom might choose not to endorse such an event.
2. If the event is in the larger, non-Jewish community, any food provided by Neve Shalom shall be Kosher, but we will not require other institutions to provide Kosher food.

Category Three: Events in Congregants' Homes

1. This is the most difficult category. It requires us to balance the expectation of many of our members that they will be able to partake in any Neve Shalom event no matter what their level of kashrut observance against our desire to enable any member of the synagogue to host an event such as the very successful "Guess Who's Coming to Shabbas?" without their Jewish observance being judged.

2. In such cases we will clearly communicate the following options for hosts of Neve Shalom events in their homes. Our members should feel secure choosing the option that is most comfortable for them and informing their guests of their decision.

• Option One: Have the meal catered by a kosher vendor and served with disposable plates and silverware. For those who are not secure in their own observance of kashrut, this should assure both hosts and guests that the host has the best intention to provide a supervised and kosher meal.
  On the other hand, it is expensive and less Hamish.

• Option Two: Serve a meal that is kosher fish, vegetarian or dairy and make it clear to potential guests that this will be the case. This may not rise to the level of observance that would be comfortable for someone whose observance is very stringent, but if the hosts are clear, the guests can self-select.

• Option Three: Prepare a meat, dairy or parve meal in a kosher home. This, of course, raises the question of how each family defines its observance of kashrut. In order to avoid the synagogue having to judge the kashrut of each kitchen, each host and guest can discuss the kashrut observance of any particular home. It is our hope that most guests will give their fellow congregants the benefit of the doubt.

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Individuals bringing food into Neve Shalom

INDIVIDUALS

From time to time individuals may want to bring food into the building for example a family may come to eat in the Sukkah for lunch on hol hamoed sukkot.  Individuals may bring a cold, dairy food option.

Food products made in private homes may not be served at any meal or function at the synagogue.

Food cooked at home is not permitted in the synagogue in order to maintain a maximalist approach for observances in the synagogue.

Lunch Options for individuals

Individuals in the building for lunch, including children in the pre-school, school staff and office staff need to respect the kosher rules of Congregation Neve Shalom and pack a cold kosher dairy lunch.

Sandwiches: egg salad, tuna salad, cream cheese & jelly, domestic (not imported)

cheese, bagel with cream cheese.

Other Options: yogurt, cheese and crackers, string cheese, cereal with milk, cottage cheese, hard boiled eggs, hummus, pita, fresh fruit (cut into small bite sized pieces), applesauce, fresh vegetables (cut into small bite sized pieces and dip, any kind of pasta, salad, pudding, pretzels, chips, crackers, cookies.

Beverages: milk, juice, water. soda.

Please do not include the following items: meat of any kind (not even kosher meat) or shellfish (shrimp, lobster, clams, mussels, crab, scallops, calamari, scungilli).

Neve Shalom is not nut free; the classrooms are nut free. 

Birthday Parties & Food

We encourage you to share your child's birthday with his/her classmates. Please clear the date and the plans for the celebration with your child's teacher. Please keep in mind that all food products brought into the building must be Kosher. This means that they must either be from a bakery approved by the synagogue or in a package bearing rabbinical certification. We are sorry but we cannot permit home-baked items under any circumstances. A few hints: all Entenmann's products are kosher, and anything baked at the Costco bakery is now kosher as well. In addition, all foods must be nut free.

When a packaged food item is kosher, it has a stamp or "hechsher" mark on the outside of the package. It generally looks like one of the following:  or .

If you have any questions, or are unsure of what to bring in for your child's birthday celebration please feel free to ask any of our teaching or administrative staff for assistance. If there are any food allergies in the classroom we make sure that each child is accommodated by providing an alternative birthday "treat" to allow everyone to share in the festivities.

Our school has a beautiful custom, initiated by the parents themselves, to donate either a book, toy, or classroom item to the Early Childhood Center in honor of a child's birthday. It is a wonderful way to honor your child's birthday and at the same time enrich our classroom learning environment. If you are interested in donating a book, toy, or other classroom item to our school in honor of your child's birthday, please speak with you're the Director so that we can avoid duplication.

Individual Birthday Parties

Please keep in mind when planning your child's home birthday party that there are Neve Shalom families who keep Kosher and observe Shabbat and the other Jewish holidays. When possible, please schedule parties on other days than Shabbat and Jewish holidays.

1. Please try to consider all of the children in your child's class when planning a birthday celebration.
2. If you are planning a party that does not meet these specifications, kindly do not use classroom or synagogue mailboxes for invitations.

THE RABBI OF NEVE SHALOM IS THE M’ARA D’ATRA(rabbinic authority) AND ALL DECISIONS ABOUT KASHRUT ARE MADE ONLY THE BY RABBI.