Some of the mashgichim (kosher supervisors) in remote locations in Southeast Asia and elsewhere are in fact emissaries (shluchim) of Chabad who “freelance” for some of the largest kosher certification agencies. “They just happen to be everywhere,” said a leading authority on kosher, “and it makes sense to utilize their knowledge and understanding of the local community.” There are no numbers of the number of shluchim who double as mashgichim but one source told Kosher Today that it is in the high hundreds.
This involvement by Chabad is over and above the service the organization provides to tourists and businessmen who visit many locations that do not have any kosher food. The latest Chabad Center to open is in Warsaw, where a new center will also feature a kosher restaurant. Chabad has also been involved in educating many Jews about the benefits of kosher with such programs as group visits to supermarkets. A New York kosher purveyor said that “when you add up what they’ve done for kosher over the years, it’s huge.”
Chabad A Key to Worldwide Kosher Growth
Major kosher certification agencies have in recent years dramatically increased kosher supervision in some 75 countries throughout the world, contributing to the worldwide explosion of kosher foods, particularly ingredients, but many in the kosher food industry credit the worldwide Chabad (followers of the late Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, Lubavitcher Rebbe) movement for many of these gains.
Some of the mashgichim (kosher supervisors) in remote locations in Southeast Asia and elsewhere are in fact emissaries (shluchim) of Chabad who “freelance” for some of the largest kosher certification agencies. “They just happen to be everywhere,” said a leading authority on kosher, “and it makes sense to utilize their knowledge and understanding of the local community.” There are no numbers of the number of shluchim who double as mashgichim but one source told Kosher Today that it is in the high hundreds.
This involvement by Chabad is over and above the service the organization provides to tourists and businessmen who visit many locations that do not have any kosher food. The latest Chabad Center to open is in Warsaw, where a new center will also feature a kosher restaurant. Chabad has also been involved in educating many Jews about the benefits of kosher with such programs as group visits to supermarkets. A New York kosher purveyor said that “when you add up what they’ve done for kosher over the years, it’s huge.”
