Kosher Australia

Please read the following notes very carefully before using The Food Guide. Also, for the consumer's benefit, we have incorporated important notes and warnings throughout the guide.

Kosher products listed in this Guide fall into two categories: Kosher Certified and Kosher Approved.

Kosher Certified

Kosher Certified products are checked by means of regular factory visits, correspondence with manufacturers and, where appropriate, properly supervised production.

A formal legal contractual arrangement exists with the manufacturer preventing any changes without written authority of Kosher Australia.

No leniencies are used - with the exception of Cholov Stam (unsupervised milk). If the product is Cholov Yisrael then the words 'Cholov Yisrael' will appear next to our Kosher Symbol.

Kosher Certified products are authorised to carry our Kosher symbol and receive a formal certificate and Kosher ID that can be accessed on www.digitalkosher.com.

Certified products appear in the Guide with symbol. If the word 'KAust' also appears in the comments column then the product MUST bear the Kosher Australia symbol on the label or packaging.

Pas Yisroel

All bread and baked goods listed as certified in this Guide are Pas Yisrael (lit:"Bread of an Israelite," he:פת ישראל), meaning grain products cooked or baked by an orthodox Jew or, at the very least, cooked or baked in an oven lit by an orthodox Jew.

Mehadrin

Most certified products are of Mehadrin standard and are denoted by a symbol. Mehadrin products conform with the highest standards in Kosher certification. It is the aim of Kosher Australia to ensure that ALL certified products (other than Non-Cholov Yisroel dairy products) will be of Mehadrin standard in the very near future.

Kosher Approved

Kosher Approved products are not formally certified by Kosher Australia and cannot bear our kosher symbol.

These products are approved after being checked by means of factory visits and correspondence with manufacturers. However no formal contractual arrangements are in force with the companies producing these approved items and information may be subject to variance without notice.

The approval may also involve various leniencies e.g the use of Pas Palter (baked goods prepared by non-Jewish bakeries) or the use of 'approved' but uncertified vegetable oils.

These 'approved' products appear in the Guide without the symbol and without the letters KA.

In the interests of maintaining the best standards of kashrus it is recommended that where available, certified products be used rather than approved products.

Symbols Used in the Guide

		Product certified by Kosher Australia & is Mehadrin even without a KAust logo
	KAust	Product certified by Kosher Australia & is Kosher & Mehadrin only if bearing the KAust logo
		Product certified by Kosher Australia
	KAust	Product certified by Kosher Australia & is Kosher only if bearing the KAust logo
		Not certified by Kosher Australia but of Mehadrin standard
NK		Product has been checked and is not Kosher, is not acceptable pending further investigation, or is not recommended by the Rabbinic Board of Kosher Australia

Other Notes

All listed products have been marked either as:

	Milchig	Dairy products
	Fleishig	Meat products
	Parve	Non-dairy, non-meat products

Note for vegetarians and vegans: parve (P) products are free of all dairy or meat extracts, but may contain eggs or fish. Please read the product label.

Milchig (D) products and establishments that are Cholov Yisrael, i.e. of Mehadrin standard, have been specifically noted as such.

So-called 'non dairy' products can nevertheless still contain some dairy derivatives as well as other ingredients that are not acceptable.

Labels on food products do not necessarily list all the ingredients or production aids, and are therefore an unreliable guide to the Kosher status of a product. Food technology is complex, using various processing and formulation techniques often involving the addition of processing aids or other substances that while affecting the kashrus of the product, are not active ingredients, and may not be listed on the label of the product.

Kosher consumers are warned against accepting assurances of shopkeepers or sales representatives as to the kosher status of any product as they are not usually in a position to know the true nature of the ingredients of any product not bearing a recognised Kosher endorsement. The labelling of products as kosher by means of a coloured sticker or in some other way may not be completely accurate and should not be relied on.

Kosher consumers should be aware that even with the best of intentions, supermarket staff or other customers might inadvertently place non-kosher food items in specially designated kosher sections. Kosher Australia advises consumers to check each item carefully.

No conclusion should be drawn from the absence from the Guide of any firm or product. We list only those products about which we have definitive information.

Fish or vegetables cooked in a non-supervised restaurant cannot be accepted as Kosher even if the restaurant is advertised as vegetarian or vegan. The use of non-kosher ingredients and utensils have been regularly found in such establishments and there is also the additional problem of bishul akum (food cooked entirely by a non-Jew).

Products available in health food shops often contain ingredients that are not accepted even if the basic product appears to be acceptable.

The Rabbinic Board of Kosher Australia reiterates that grape juice and blends of grape juice with other juices are not acceptable without reliable Rabbinical Kosher Certification.

Bread and other baked goods listed in this Guide are Pas Yisrael unless specifically marked as Pas Palter (bread baked by non-Jewish bakeries). It is Halachically recommended to use Pas Yisrael products in preference to Pas Palter products.

To increase the usefulness of this Guide, some product information from other Kosher authorities has been incorporated where the product does not carry a Kosher logo. However, these products are not under the supervision of Kosher Australia nor have they been checked by Kosher Australia. Therefore Kosher Australia itself does not accept any responsibility for the status of these products. These products are marked with a number in superscript as listed in Recognised Kashrus Authorities indicating that the kosher status of the product is 'endorsed' by another agency. Generally we only list endorsements that are known to comply with the standards of Kosher Australia.

Firms listed in the Guide are generally checked annually and if they, or any of their lines, are removed from the Guide then it is usually because, due to manufacturing modifications, the product no longer has the Rabbinic Board's approval, or the product is no longer manufactured.

Products mentioned in the Guide are not acceptable for Pesach unless they are listed in the current Pesach Guide.

We are grateful for the co-operation of other Rabbinical authorities locally and internationally. Products certified by Rabbinic authorities that clearly bear their kosher symbol or certification are generally not listed in this Guide. These products are easily identifiable in their own right. A list of acceptable international kosher symbols is listed in Other Certifications.

Please be aware when using any overseas Kashrus guides (for Pesach or the whole year round) that many food and medicinal items manufactured in the US or elsewhere overseas, even if bearing the exact same company or item name, can be made locally from different ingredients or on equipment that is not Kosher. This is not just a remote possibility. We have come across numerous examples of this both with Pesach and non-Pesach items. If consumers do use the overseas handbooks for checking on the kashrus status of various products they should carefully check any items listed to ascertain clearly that the items available here, were manufactured in the country of the agency that published the guide. In case of any doubt it is recommended that the item not be used - especially for Pesach.