Barbara Pollack wrote:

> As someone who has kept kosher for many years, my impression is that, if
> anything, the rate has gone down.  The big difference is that there are
> MANY more products under kosher supervision.  Certification has become
> quite the thing to do in the food industry.

Good Point!  I hadn't thought of the fact that so many more products are
certified, and that this would explain why we see more alerts,
especially if some of the companies are new to this.

I also recall days where finding kosher foods outside of a large metro
area was almost impossible.  Now, they are everywhere.  There have been
stories in the media about this, mentioning that the consumers of kosher
food are a much broader market than religious Jewish households, but
also include folks with dietary restrictions and also Islamic families,
if I am not mistaken.

After my experience last summer, contacting all these organizations, I
also was very impressed, as Barbara was, at the depth of knowledge the
rabbis had regarding food science and food manufacturing.  As I said, so
far, we have had good luck following the heckshers.

This list has also helped us beyond belief!  Thank goodness for these
support systems in our milk-free lives!

Dale Robin Lockman Ima (mom) to Seth & Aaron
West Kennebunk, Maine