by Marion Nestle
Mar 22 2013

Reading for the holiday weekend: Kosher!

Timothy D. Lytton.  Kosher: Private Regulation in the Age of Industrial Food.  Harvard University Press, 2013.

I blurbed this one, and for good reason:

Kosher is one terrific book.  It’s a wonderfully entertaining account of the squabbles, finger-pointing, and cutthroat competition that turned kosher certification from scandalous corruption to a respectable—and highly profitable—business.  Today, if a food is labeled kosher, it is kosher, which is more than can be said of most claims on food labels. You don’t have to be Jewish to appreciate the fun in Timothy Lytton’s presentation of an unusually successful case study in business ethics.

Here’s Lytton’s  flyer on how to get it.  And his recent column in Food Safety News.

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  • Mary

    Interesting. Now that’s exactly how I think the labeling of GMOs ought to proceed. If it’s controlled by the group that sets the rules to their philosophical standards, it can be profitable–er, I mean meeting your needs specifically.

    It’s hilarious to me that the recent rumored meeting about federal GMO labeling had everyone queasy about what might come out of that. And the circular firing squad that is the organic foodies about the organic standards.

    Philosophical labels should be handled by those who are have the issues with the process.

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  • I love your posts as always! Thanks!