Thanks to Mark for his post on Parve foods and their relilability. I'd
like to know more about the FAN notice, as I do not get their email.

Last summer, I contacted a number of the kashrut certifying
organizations to ask questions such as these---
*what about the chances of cross contamination
*what about food additives that were so far from the original substance
so as no longer to be considered dairy, but may contain trace amounts of
protein
*what about the machinery cleaning processes and the dependability of
that

After talking with and corresponding with a number of rabbis with
kashrut organizations, I felt mostly comforted, but I do recall posting
my results on this list with the warning that every rabbi with whom I
spoke or wrote mentioned the possibility of human error, undetected
carelessness, mislabelled items, impossible-to-clean nooks and crannies,
and other glitches.  Each said that unless you make it in your own
kitchen, with raw, fresh ingredients, there is probably no absolute
guarantee.  In fact there are some ultra-orthodox Jews that do not trust
the heckshers, or who only trust some, and not others.  (My feeling is
that this has more to do with religious observance as a whole, than with
milk and meat separation, per se).  I also know that, at least with the
OU (Orthodox Union) they do have the website and a notification service
of problems with kashrut, as we have seen posted on this list.

All the rabbis I spoke with said that once a question is raised about
the proper kashrut of a food, they do investigate, and the problem is
corrected as soon as possible, or the hecksher is changed (parve to
dairy, for example) or the company loses it hecksher.  For the food
manufacturers, it is strictly an economic incentive to follow the rules
to the letter...it's a big and growing hecksher-shopping clientele.

I would suggest, re: the Stella D'oro cookie problem, that those who
have had the questionable experience with them notify the OU (if that is
their hecksher).  I feel certain that they would want to look into it if
several folks had the same problem.

So, friends, while there are no guarantees, I think the parve hecksher
is as reliable a system as we are going to get.  If my child were
anaphylactic to milk, I think I may be a little less trusting, and
double check each food I bring in to the home with a call (or better
yet, a letter)to the manufacturer.

Sorry this is so long...I'm full of words tonight!
Good luck to all

Dale Robin Lockman Ima (mom) to Seth,5 and Aaron,3
West Kennebunk, Maine