What is kosher, anyway?

Kosher means 'correct' or 'proper'. As applied to food, the term kosher describes food that is correct for a Jew to eat. There are three main characteristics of kosher food: the animal or plant from which the food is produced, the way the animal is killed or the plant harvested and the way the food is prepared. Each of these elements require knowledge and experience to determine, particularly the last two. A kosher certifying agency such as Wisconsin-K assures the prospective buyer through a hechsher (kosher certification) on the label of the final product that all the conditions of kosher have been met.

Why should our company be kosher certified?.

Jews are not the only people who look for kosher certification on food products. Many Muslims, certain Christian groups, vegetarians and other people concerned simply about food quality also rely on the kosher certification of their food and the food products. It is surprising to those unfamiliar with kosher certification to find how many products in any supermarket are in fact kosher.

Further, many if not most of the basic ingredients and additives produced by the food industry are now kosher. Over the last few decades many major companies have discovered the commercial value of kosher certification. They have found that the the additional sales and respect their companies receive are well worth the fees and minor inconvenience of kosher supervision.

What do we do to become certified as kosher?

Contact us. You can use the email form on this page or you can call us at 414-247-8745. We will go through the process with you, but listed below are some things to do in advance.

• Prepare a full list of your products and their ingredients, and how they are prepared. Many of the ingredients may already be kosher. If so, get the certification letters from the suppliers for these.
• Next, make a time for us to visit your company at all its production sites. Be prepared to go through the production process in detail. If you have already become certified organic, you will find this visit to be similar.
• Finally, clarify what your questions might be. Being a kosher facility is not for everyone, particularly if it means major changes in ingredients, or in the recipes themselves. Also, becoming kosher will require the disclosure of information that is proprietary. Further, kosher certification requires periodic un-announced visits to the production facility. You need to feel comfortable with this.