Kashrut is a system of ritual rules that determine whether something meets the requirements of Halacha, Jewish Law. The laws of kashrut are based on the commandments of the Torah, as well as additional rules established by Jewish religious authorities, mainly in the Mishnah and Gemara, which together form the Talmud (Oral Torah).
Usually the term " kashrut"is used in relation to a set of religious regulations related to food, but it is also used in other aspects of traditional life - from legal (for example, the competence of witnesses) to everyday (choice of fabric) and ritual (tefillin, tzitzit).
Kashrut food
Kosher laws vary slightly among different Jewish communities. The greatest differences exist in the observance of Easter prohibitions. The rules of kashrut vary among different movements within Judaism, for example, for especially believers there are especially strict rules, the so-called glat kosher(Yiddish גלאַט כּשר - “simply/strictly kosher”).
Kosher meat
Animals that live on land
Only meat from animals that are simultaneously ruminants (strictly herbivorous) and artiodactyls (having cloven hooves). These are herbivores such as cows, sheep and goats, as well as: moose, gazelles, mountain goats, giraffes, etc.
The Torah lists four types of animals that have only one of the two characteristics of kosher. These are pig, camel, hyrax and hare. These animals are prohibited for food. Thus, pork is not kosher because the pig does not chew the cud, not because the pig is dirtier than other animals.
Birds
The Torah does not specify any characteristics for kosher birds. She simply rattles off a list of club birds. Among them are such as eagle, owl, pelican. Since today it is not possible to accurately identify all the bird birds listed in the Torah, only poultry that is traditionally kosher is eaten. These are chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys and pigeons.
Bird eggs must have different ends: one is sharper, the other is more rounded. The eggs of those bird species that have the same ends: either both sharp or both blunt, cannot be eaten (usually such birds are predatory or scavengers). Since blood is strictly prohibited for consumption, eggs that contain a blood clot are non-kosher.
Biblical animals whose names are unknown
The meaning of the names of some animals mentioned in the Pentateuch in connection with kashrut has not been precisely established by researchers. Among them: " anaka» , « letaa» , « homet», « tinshemet» , « hargol» , « hagav» , « solam».
Slaughter of livestock and poultry ( shechita) and koshering of meat
The laws of kashrut also apply to the process of slaughtering an animal. For meat to be completely kosher, it must meet several requirements:
There are also special laws for the ritual preparation of a knife with which an animal will be slaughtered - how to sharpen the knife, check that there is not the slightest chip on it, etc.; laws on where and how to cut (only with one movement and only the throat in the area of the carotid artery). Meat from properly slaughtered animals whose health has been irreparably damaged is not kosher.
The Torah prohibits eating blood. That's why the meat is soaked in water room temperature, and then placed on a special pickling board and sprinkled coarse salt. Salt absorbs blood. After this, the meat is thoroughly washed.
Sho(y)het usually studies for many years in a yeshiva to gain a general knowledge of Jewish law. Then he undergoes a special course for carvers, lasting about a year and ending with an exam. Only after this does he receive the right to do shechita. The laws on shechita and testing an animal carcass for kosher are very numerous and complex, so only a person who has thoroughly studied them and received the appropriate diploma has the right to practice this craft.
A specialist who inspects the carcass of an animal intended for food is called mashgiach(Hebrew: משגיח, overseer). The mashgiach examines the carcass to determine whether there are signs of disease that would qualify the meat as treph. There are other professions related to kashrut, for example menaker(Hebrew מנקר) - a person who cleanses back carcasses from veins prohibited for consumption.
Kosher fish
"Fish" in in this case is an expanded concept that includes not only fish themselves, but also other animals living in the water. Fish, according to the laws of kashrut, is not meat, and therefore there are rules regarding it meat products do not apply. Fish is “parve” (from Yiddish פּאַרעװע, “neither milk nor meat,” “neutral”), that is, it can be eaten with both meat and dairy products. However, there is a tradition not to eat fish with meat.
Kosher fish, according to the definition of kashrut, have two mandatory characteristics: they have scales and fins. Kosher scales are not permanently attached to the body of the fish and can be easily separated if you run your fingernail over the fish. In case there is doubt about the presence of fins or scales in a fish, there are auxiliary signs: a kosher fish has gills, a backbone, and must spawn.
Honey production begins the moment a worker bee leaves the hive to collect nectar or pollen. The bee collects nectar in a bag located on its body and brings it to the hive. In the hive, nectar is passed from one bee to another, chewed and spat out several times. This way it is formed thick syrup, which contains large quantity protein and very little moisture. The worker bee pours the syrup into the cell of the honeycomb and then blows it with her wings. This makes the syrup even thicker. This is how honey is made.
Thus, despite the fact that from a strictly scientific point of view, nectar undergoes enzymatic biotransformation by secretions secreted in the crop of the honey bee, from the point of view of kashrut, honey is flower juice processed by the bee and is therefore considered a product of plant rather than animal origin.
Kosher drinks
Some varieties of vodka are trephine because they contain dairy additives (for example, Posolskaya vodka).
Easter kashrut
For products in factory packaging, in addition to the kashrut stamp, there must be a special stamp “ Kasher LePesach"("Kosher for Passover").
Chametz
On Pesach you cannot not only use, but also possess leaven (chametz).
Examples of kvass:
- Any grains such as wheat, barley, rye, oats, or spelt that have come into contact with water or other liquids should be considered chametz because they may begin to ferment.
- Flour products: flour noodles, vermicelli, oatmeal, bread, cake, cookies, pastries, matzo and matzo dishes not prepared specifically for Passover.
- Cereal products: cornflakes, air wheat grains, crushed wheat, etc.
- Malt products: all malt and yeast products, vegetable extracts, mustard and other seasonings.
- Drinks: beer, whiskey and others alcoholic drinks, malt vinegar and pickled products containing malt vinegar, fruit essences, glucose.
The rules regarding leaven may vary among different Jewish communities. Thus, Ashkenazim prohibit the food and consumption of the so-called. kitniyot: products containing legumes, rice, and similar products such as peanuts, etc. There are different customs regarding different vegetable oils, such as soybean oil and corn oil.
Opinions on the meaning of kashrut
The benefits of kosher food
According to this opinion, the Creator, who created the world, gave humanity a Law in accordance with which to live. He knows better than anyone what is good and beneficial for a person’s spiritual well-being. Just as if a doctor gives a patient certain medicines or prescribes a diet, the patient will follow the doctor's instructions without even understanding their meaning. The patient understands that the doctor knows better what kind of treatment is needed, and takes the prescribed medications, even if he has no idea how exactly they work.
Striving for Holiness
According to this view, the purpose of the laws of kashrut is to instill qualities such as self-discipline and self-restraint, and to elevate the act of eating from an animal level to a highly organized and conscious one.
Thus, the laws of kashrut are part of the system of commandments of the Torah, by following which a person learns to control his desires and passions and, thereby, grows spiritually.
Preservation of national self-identification
Many kashrut laws are intended to limit contact with non-Jews. For example, many types of food are considered treasury only because they were prepared by non-Jews. Grape wine food prepared by non-Jews is also prohibited.
These “inconvenient” laws serve as a barrier, a barrier to contacts that could ultimately lead to marriage with a non-Jew, which is a serious violation of the Torah. Kashrut also brings Jews together wherever they are. When a kosher-observant Jew travels to another city or country, he will look for a rabbi and a community where he can get kosher food. And in the synagogue, the Jew meets even more new friends who share his views and moral values. Thus, a Jew who observes the laws of kashrut will never find himself alone in any city in the world where Jews live.
When someone in a non-kosher restaurant orders beef steak instead of pork chops, trying to keep kosher, I no longer laugh at him. This person's choice may indicate an attempt to give up non-kosher pork... If he refuses butter and does not dilute his coffee with milk after meat, I respect this man even more, because he obviously remembers the commandment of Kashrut “DO NOT BOIL A CALF IN THE MOTHER’S MILK”... And if he generally prefers fish to meat, I see in him a man who is seriously trying to live according to God's commandments
R. Zalman Schachter, “The State of the Jewish Faith”
Moral values
According to this approach, the purpose of kashrut laws is to
- reduce to a minimum the number of animals that can be killed;
- kill animals in the most painless way;
- to cultivate an aversion to shedding blood.
Cruelty to animals is expressly prohibited by the Torah. Hunting and killing animals for entertainment is prohibited. Animals can only be killed for food, medical research, etc. Shekhita(slaughter of livestock according to the Torah) is one of the most humane methods of killing an animal. According to kashrut laws, any injured animal is no longer kosher. Therefore, animals should be killed quickly - with one blow, in order to reduce pain to a minimum. The tools used by the carver (knife, ax) must be sharp. The animal loses consciousness in a split second.
The Torah also prohibits eating blood. This explains the special laws of slaughtering livestock, soaking and salting meat, ensuring the removal of blood. Thus the Torah teaches not to be cruel.
It is surprising that none of the Israelis’ neighbors shares their absolute ban on drinking blood. Blood is looked at as a food product... Blood is a symbol of life. According to the laws of Judaism, a person has the right to maintain his life by eating only minimum quantity living matter... Man has no right to encroach on “life” itself. Therefore, blood - life - must be symbolically "returned to God" - the meat must be bled before cooking.
Jacob Milgrom, professor at the University of Berkeley
Objectivity and brands of kashrut
The product packaging may have several seals from authorities that verify kosher. This is done to cater to all market segments.
From all of the above, it follows that kashrut is a hermeneutic set of subjective judgments, and it cannot be confirmed by objective laboratory research. Therefore, many religious people do not rely on kashrut licenses from government agencies such as the Chief Rabbinate in Israel or the New York State Board of Kosher, or large organizations such as the Orthodox Union, but prefer licensing from a rabbi they know or is revered in their community.
Since the 1950s there has been a generally accepted international trademark kosher food products- letter "TO" in a circle - confirming the kosher nature of the product. The packaging may have several seals and branding marks. This means that manufacturers took care to obtain a kashrut license from various authorities in order to satisfy all possible market segments. In Israel in 1977, everyone largest networks supermarkets have removed non-kosher products from their shelves. In the Israel Defense Forces, it is mandatory to prepare only kosher food.
Kosher Market
Currently the market kosher products has become a huge business. In the USA alone, the annual market turnover is different estimates from 50 to 150 billion dollars. According to Food Industry News magazine, the market for kosher products is actively expanding, winning large segments of non-Jewish consumers.
According to Kosher Today magazine, among the 11 million Americans who choose kosher foods, only one million are Jewish. Kosher products are consumed not only by devout Jews, but also by other categories of consumers: vegetarians, Seventh-day Adventists, Muslims, people with allergies to lactose or gluten, and many other categories of consumers.
Volume Russian market of kosher products is about $5 million (as of July 2006). In addition to stores traditionally operating at synagogues, in 2002, Kosher LLC opened the first and so far only kosher food supermarket in Moscow on Trifonovskaya Street.
We've all heard the word "kosher" at some point. It means fit or suitable. Often used in relation to food by Jewish believers. Stores with the same name are required to have a certificate from a rabbi. It guarantees that only kosher products are sold. There is a special set of rules that determines what a Jew can eat and what not. It's called kashrut. These rules are very difficult for the average person to understand, but for Judaism this is the norm. For example, you cannot eat dairy and meat at the same time or pork. We will not delve too deeply into the essence of the rules; we will only say that the modern concept of “kosher” is not at all what we described above. Now its meaning has acquired a new connotation: “normal, suitable.”
Nutrition
Kosher nutrition is now becoming increasingly popular. This desire is not at all connected with religion, but is a simple desire to improve the health of the body, make its work easier and free it from heavy food.
Kosher is a diet that includes environmentally friendly, healthy foods that are included and permitted by kashrut. They are marked with a special sign, which guarantees usefulness, environmental friendliness and superior quality. Costs a lot more kosher food. What exactly is this - we will tell you a little further.
Products
As for meat, it includes lamb, beef, goat, and wild herbivores. Kosher animals are those with cloven hooves and the ability to chew. There are also a number of rules for slaughtering and processing meat.
Everything is simpler with fish. If it has fins and scales, it can safely be classified as “kosher products”.
“What does this mean, every fish has scales,” you will be surprised. We'll explain. Scales are not present in all fish species. For example, it is absent in eel, catfish, shark, and sturgeon. Accordingly, black caviar is also not suitable for consumption, and kosher - this, as we already know, means “suitable”. Seafood is not like this either - due to the lack of fins.
As for birds, the Torah says nothing about them; it only talks about predators and scavengers. They cannot be used. Cutting and slaughter here must also be carried out in a special way.
Eating insects and rodents is prohibited. Forbidden species also include the meat of hares, rabbits, amphibians and reptiles. Tora makes an exception for honey, although it is produced by insects.
Kosher food: what it is and how to prepare it
Cooking such food baffles many people. For example, you cannot cook meat and dairy products together, or eat them. If you want to cook poultry in white sauce, it will be simply unforgivable. Deeply religious people prepare these products using different dishes. Some even use different stoves, but this is a cost of beliefs. Dairy products can be eaten or drunk only six hours after meat products, and this is correct. Such a mixture is not very beneficial for the body. After cheese, it is also better to eat meat after six hours.
The consumption of milk for Jews is permitted only from kosher animals. According to the rules, the milking is supervised by a rabbi or his authorized representative.
So, kosher. What does this mean for products? In relation to bread, this word implies baking by the believers themselves. During the baking process, you need to tear off a piece and burn it. It's called halu. If bread is not baked at home, even there the ovens should only be turned on by Jews and monitored by them.
Regarding eggs, there should be no spots on them, especially blood. IN Everyday life we don’t pay much attention to this, but for believers it is very important. Also, you can’t cook them all together. It is allowed to cook only three pre-washed pieces in one container.
If you think that with plant foods simpler - you are mistaken. Let's understand the concept of kosher products, what they are and how to use them. Since insects and various worms are prohibited for consumption, Jews have to carefully inspect and sift cereals, flour, legumes, herbs, fruits, vegetables, and berries. We, of course, also check food for the presence of the above, but we are not so scrupulous about this process.
Are kosher products beneficial?
These products include wine and all drinks that contain grapes, as well as their derivatives. Such wines are much more expensive than even the highest quality foreign ones. They are produced and manufactured exclusively by Jews. Grapes must be harvested at a certain time from those bushes that have reached four years of age.
Before each production, a ritual sacrifice is made and a prayer is read. At wine factories, all other processes must be stopped at this time. You haven’t yet understood the whole essence of the term “ kosher products", what it is? Then we will go deeper and say that this is the constant sterilization of everything from equipment to communications. This is done not only to disinfect, but also to clean everything. Something like cleansing before the new.
Prohibitions
Under no circumstances should a stranger be allowed to see how wine is made. It is believed that this is a sacred ritual during which outsiders are strictly prohibited from entering.
Working on Saturday is a terrible sin. All production stops for one day.
If someone of non-Jewish blood touches the food, it will lose its kosher status and become unsuitable for cooking.
Kosher wines began to be pasteurized. All this is done to prevent loss of "fitness". Therefore, these and any other wines should be uncorked and poured only by Jews.
Of course, you need to understand that this is just a religious approach to making products, and it has nothing to do with healthy eating. Today, winemakers often avoid such rituals, since it takes a lot of time, and produce ordinary wine drinks.
Conclusion
Summarize. We touched only on the main points in the article about kosher products. These traditions are significant only for Jewish believers and do not apply to ordinary people. You should also not confuse ordinary organic and healthy products with kosher ones.
Alcohol grape drinks widely used in other cultures, different peoples. For example, Christians use it as communion wine, like the blood of the Lord.
But still, kosher products are many times healthier, tastier and cleaner than regular ones. All production is well controlled and products are produced to the highest quality standards. You don’t even have to think about hygiene, since it is constantly checked, especially regarding meat. All living creatures undergo total control and are constantly tested for diseases and so on. You can’t even eat an injured animal, let alone a sick one. When caring and feeding, hormones or antibiotics are not used.
Culinary traditions are created not in gourmet restaurants, but by the hands of nature itself. It is nature that dictates our gastronomic habits - if the land is rich and fertile, then the dishes will be very varied, but if the climate is harsh, the cuisine will be boring and nutritious. It is on this principle that the cuisines of the peoples of the world historically developed. Today, despite the fact that coconuts have become available in the north, as well as venison and cloudberries in the south, the concept national cuisines still hasn't disappeared.
The only exception is the Jews - they live (and historically) in various parts of the world, while their cuisine is the same, and is “standardized” not by “Mother Nature”, but by the Holy Scriptures. Jewish food is called kosher food, which means suitable food, correct, healthy.
Kosher rules
Kosher food is food permitted by kashrut. Kashrut is a set of rules that dictates not only the list of permitted products, but also methods of preparation. At the same time, the word “kosher” can easily be applied not only to food, but also to a person, situation, or object. In any case, “kosher” will mean correct, positive.
What kosher food is said in the Bible is animals with “cloven hooves” and “chewing the cud.” This applies to approved animals. Animals must not only be chosen correctly, but also slaughtered. Jewish communities issue permits to butchers, and they must cut the carcass according to all the rules - completely drain the blood, conduct a preliminary inspection. The meat is soaked in salt water before cooking.
As for the plants, they are all kosher.
Meat
So, let's take a closer look at what food is kosher. First of all, we need to deal with the meat. Animals must be both artiodactyls and herbivores, which means:
- cows;
- sheep;
- goats;
- moose;
- gazelles;
- mountain goats;
- giraffes.
Pigs are prohibited by kashrut because they do not “chew the cud.” In addition, an animal that is sick or caught during a hunt is not kosher. Fat located near the stomach should be removed, as well as the sciatic nerve. Only the first half of the animal’s body is “edible” according to kosher. Using the example of a cow, starting from the udder, all meat is not kosher.
Bird
Poultry that is slaughtered by a butcher with permission from the community is considered kosher. That is, these are chickens, geese, quails, turkeys, pigeons, ducks, etc. Kosher eggs must come from permitted birds. If a blood clot is found in the egg, it should be removed.
Fish
Kosher fish must have fins and scales. It would seem that all fish are suitable, but not everything is so simple. Sturgeon, eels, sharks, catfish, whales, and dolphins do not have kosher scales. This means their use is prohibited. The same ban applies to crustaceans and mollusks.
Product combination
In kosher food recipes, the combination and order of consumption is also very important. So, all products are divided into dairy, meat and neutral. Dairy products cannot be eaten with meat products, but neutral ones can be combined with both the former and the latter. After consuming meat products, several hours must pass before consuming dairy products is allowed. Also, you should not eat food that combines meat and dairy products. Fish is considered a neutral product, but traditionally it is not combined with meat. 
Kosher laws are so strict that kitchens have separate utensils, tables, cabinets, and even sinks for dairy and meat foods. In principle, after the first “oohs” of indignation, a rule of hygiene in cooking may come to our minds, which states that to work with different products, you need to have separate knives, cutting boards, vessels. And in the kitchens of restaurants, like the Jews, fish and meat are also washed in different sinks.
Simply put, “kosher” is simply a way to protect and improve a person’s nutrition, an opportunity to teach him to watch what he eats and how he prepares it.
Today, many people who are not Jews and have no connection with the Law of Moses have become interested in the kosher food system. This is not caused by religious considerations, but by the desire to improve the diet, to make it as acceptable as possible for absorption by the human body. And it’s true, nutrition, which is based on the consumption of kosher products, is really healthy and has a very good effect on human health. So today we will tell you what kosher food means and what products are kosher. Shall we get started?
What does it mean?
If you try to find out what kosher food is, the essence will be something like this: it is food that is environmentally friendly and healthy products, rational and thoughtful, meeting the laws of kashrut, or kosher - certain norms and rules of Judaism. Of course, these rules are of little concern to people who strive for a healthy diet: for them, the main thing is the kosher products themselves, and there is nothing incomprehensible here - if nothing is complicated.
Kosher products are designated with a special kosher sign, which guarantees a person who follows the principles of kosher nutrition that they are healthy, environmentally friendly and high quality; These products are more expensive than ordinary ones, including natural ones - the right to put a special mark on them requires mandatory certification, and this always increases the cost of any product. Yes, and produce natural, healthy and quality products costs much more than the production of synthetic and artificial substitutes.
It must be said that Jewish laws, described in detail in the Torah - the Books of Moses, from ancient times made the most stringent requirements for every aspect of human life, including food and methods of preparing it. The word “kosher” in Hebrew means “suitable”, in this case a product suitable for food. And this is actually true.
Grocery list
Let's try to briefly list the main products considered kosher according to the Torah.
What meat is kosher?
Let's start with the meat. What types of meat are kosher? This is lamb, goat, beef; meat of wild herbivorous animals - deer, elk, etc. Mandatory conditions for kosher meat are the cloven hooves of animals and their ability to chew cud - if only one of these conditions is present, the meat of the animal is considered non-kosher. Other conditions – animal slaughter in a certain way and proper processing of its meat: this is one of the main reasons for the high cost of kosher food products.
What does kosher fish mean?
U kosher fish There should also be two main features: fins and scales. We, out of ignorance, may not understand the second condition, but not all fish have scales: eels, catfish, sharks, as well as sturgeon, which have long been considered a delicacy in Russian cuisine, do not have them - therefore, black caviar also not kosher. Oysters and other mollusks, like crustaceans, are not considered fish, but do not have scales or fins, and therefore are considered non-kosher; As we can see, there is no direct connection between kosher and a healthy diet - are shellfish and other seafood harmful to health?
Bird in kosher food
The Torah does not say anything about the characteristics of non-kosher birds, but it lists a few of them, mainly scavengers and predators. Kosher birds also need to be slaughtered and processed in a special way.
In a kosher diet, it is prohibited to eat insects, rodents (including rabbits and hares), reptiles and amphibians. For some insects - locusts and others, the Torah makes an exception; honey is also allowed - this is explained by the fact that it does not belong to the products produced by the body of bees, which are insects - but where does it come from then? You don’t have to be a zoologist to know that honey is produced by bees, and is precisely a product formed in the process of their life activity, but the fact that honey is considered kosher is good.
Proper preparation
Further instructions regarding kosher cooking still cause confusion among many: do not cook a kid in its mother’s milk. Who would think of cooking goat meat in goat milk - at least in our food culture? Here everything is simpler (although it could be explained directly): we mean the incompatibility of milk and meat.
According to the kosher diet, meat and dairy products cannot be cooked together; You can’t eat them in one meal; Jewish believers even use different utensils to prepare them and store them separately - however, any sanitary standards presented by special services in different countries. Another thing is that some Jews even cook milk and meat on different stoves, but this also has little to do with healthy eating and food combinations.
Jews are allowed to consume milk only 6 hours after meat - this is something we should learn from them. After milk, you can eat meat half an hour later - not entirely correct (this is too early), but better than eating everything at the same time, as in Western cuisine. After cheese, you can also eat meat 6 hours later - this is also a very useful prescription.
Milk is consumed only from kosher animals: the process of milking and production of products is monitored by a trusted rabbi.
Kosher bread must be baked by a Jew by separating and burning a small piece of dough (challah); V big bakery Jews should at least turn on the ovens and monitor the baking process.
There should be no blood stains on the eggs - this sometimes happens, but we pay little attention to this - we just wash them. Boil eggs in special pans, 3 pieces at a time.
WITH plant products simpler - at first glance. Insects and worms are prohibited by the Torah from being eaten, and believers have to not only carefully review flour, cereals, herbs and legumes, but also check all vegetables, fruits and berries - we attach much less importance to this, although we specifically eat wormy fruits, of course , no one will.
Kosher drinks and wines
With drinks in nutrition, too, not everything is clear: from the point of view of kosher and non-kosher, only drinks containing grapes or their derivatives are considered.
In general, everything is complicated with wine, and therefore it costs much more than any quality wines: French, Spanish, etc. Kosher wine is made only by Jews, and the grapes for it are harvested at a certain time in vineyards that are at least 4 years old; Such a vineyard should rest once every 7 years.
Before wine production begins, a sacrifice and prayer are performed, and other production processes are stopped at the factories at this time. Add to this the constant sterilization of equipment and communications - not only for the purpose of disinfection, but also for the purpose of purification in a religious sense. You can’t work on Saturday - production is stopped; It is impossible for outsiders to see the process of making wine - otherwise everything will have to start all over again.
If a German or a Frenchman - in general, not a Jew - accidentally touches the products intended for making kosher wine, the wine made from such products will lose its kosher quality - here the principles of healthy nutrition and the purity of the final product certainly have nothing to do with it.
Often kosher wines are pasteurized, in the belief that in this case they will remain so even when anyone opens them - that is, only Jews can even open and pour kosher wines. It gets to the point where they even require boiling grape juice– what’s the use? I wonder what they used to do before Louis Pasteur made his famous discoveries?
From what is described here (although these are only the main points), it is clear why these wines are so expensive - winemakers today are increasingly abandoning such processes, producing ordinary wine.
Instead of a conclusion
Israeli laws related to food and food, if you look at it, matter only for Jews and for their faith - they have nothing to do with residents of other countries, so it’s hardly worth calling certain products kosher just because they are natural and environmentally friendly .
Regarding alcoholic drinks made from grapes, Jews have the opinion that they can be used in the religious rites of other peoples - indeed, everyone knows that in Christianity there is “communion wine”; Wine is also used in other religions. In fact, it would be equally possible to ban drinks made from other fruits and berries, but we are only talking about grapes - so here we are talking about religious customs, and not about the principles of nutrition and health.
All prohibitions and prescriptions related to nutrition, according to the Torah, are not explained in any way - this is a purely religious approach, and healthy eating and the benefits were not even close.
However, kosher products, as well as food prepared from them, are much healthier and safer than regular ones. The production process is strictly controlled, all technical and hygienic requirements are met, and meat products are constantly checked - therefore the quality of the products is an order of magnitude higher. In slaughterhouses, special tests are carried out on animals - they must all be healthy before slaughter and not have any injuries. It is also very important that such animals are not given hormones or antibiotics when raised.
Of course, the conclusion suggests itself: to eat according to the kosher diet in our modern world very difficult, one might even say impossible, we will not find so many kosher products in our stores, but some useful points You can take note for yourself.
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