News/Press releases
Avian Flu and Kosher Food
The National Council of Shechita Boards, on behalf of all its members, is monitoring the current situation and maintaining close contact with both DEFRA and the Food Standards Agency (FSA). Over the coming weeks, the NCSB will continue to monitor the situation closely to ensure that there are no risks to the Jewish Public, or to shechita personnel, or indeed to kashrus.
The most relevant information to date is that there is no risk of catching the disease from food.
The kosher-buying public should be reassured not only by the protection offered through compulsory veterinary checks, but also by the examination made of the vital organs of poultry by experienced Bodkim. These checks which were instituted at Sinai more than two thousand years ago have been demonstrated to indicate the earliest signs of illness and especially the respiratory distress known to be the first indication of avian flu.
The combination of both civil and Halachic laws means that Kosher poultry passes some six examinations before it is cleansed through the kashering process:
· Poultry must be checked by a vet before despatch direct to the abattoir.
· A second vet will verify that journey and check the health of the poultry again.
· The Shochet will give a third check before shechita and
· after de-feathering, another vet will check the carcase.
· The Bodek will examine the internal organs and after this fifth check the successful bird will receive its kashrus seal.
· It then proceeds through soaking and salting under the watchful eye of a Shomer, and
· is rendered kosher with three final rinses.
As the FSA states, cooking is the ultimate safeguard for the consumer:
Cooking food thoroughly will kill bacteria and viruses. Our advice is that poultry and eggs should always be cooked properly to avoid food poisoning.
Follow handling and cooking instructions for cooking poultry. If you're cooking a whole chicken or other bird, pierce the thickest part of the leg (between drumstick and thigh) with a clean knife or skewer until the juices run clear. The juices shouldn't have any pink or red in them and there should be no pink meat.
Further information can be obtained from the NCSB (08000 350467 or by email: shechita@tiscali.co.uk)