Israeli Chief Rabbinate Grants Kashrut License to Tzohar Amid Legal and Political Disputes

Following a directive from Israel's Supreme Court, the Chief Rabbinate has authorized the kashrut division of the Tzohar rabbinical organization to operate as a licensed kosher certification body under the Rabbinate's regulatory framework. Tzohar hailed this as a "historic decision," marking the first time the Chief Rabbinate's kosher certification monopoly was broken by a non-Haredi entity. However, the Chief Rabbinate Council has distanced itself from this approval, claiming it was not authorized by them as legally required.

This development comes amid a broader political context where the Knesset plans to pass legislation within two weeks to repeal the kosher reform initiated by former Religious Services Minister Matan Kahana. This reform, enacted in 2021 by the Yamina and Yisrael Beiteinu parties, aimed to open the kosher certification market to competition by allowing private corporations to issue kosher certificates. Under this system, the Chief Rabbinate would transition from direct supervision to a regulatory role, issuing licenses to kosher certification corporations. These corporations could certify products based on standards set either by the Chief Rabbinate Council or by a panel of three rabbis, including imported goods, potentially reducing import certification costs.

The reform faced resistance, notably from former Religious Services Minister Michael Malchieli of Shas, who sought to ignore it. Tzohar petitioned the Supreme Court to compel the Rabbinate to recognize them as a kosher certifier. Under court pressure, the Rabbinate established criteria for certification bodies, which Tzohar met, leading to today's approval. Nonetheless, the Chief Rabbinate Council is obstructing implementation. Yehuda Avidan, CEO of the Religious Services Ministry and a Shas affiliate, issued a letter stating that the license granted by Chief Rabbinate CEO Yehuda Cohen violates the law prohibiting fraud in kosher certification, as it lacked Council approval. Rabbi Rafi Frank, Secretary of the Chief Rabbinate Council, noted the Council has 30 days to review the matter and currently does not approve the license.

Simultaneously, the coalition is advancing legislation to annul the kosher reform, aiming to restore the Rabbinate's monopoly and subordinate local religious councils to the Chief Rabbinate's kosher authority. The bill also plans to transfer 5,000 kosher supervisors to corporations controlled by religious councils, creating a large employment pool favoring Shas.

Tzohar's kosher division has operated since 2018, supervising several hundred businesses, hotels, and institutional kitchens, adhering strictly to halachic standards, arguably more stringent than many local religious councils. However, concerns over losing the Rabbinate's kosher certification have limited wider adoption. Rabbi Emmanuel Gadag, CEO of Tzohar's kosher division, responded: "We welcome the decision to grant Tzohar's kosher division approval to operate as a kosher certification body. This is a historic step to strengthen a state-supervised, professional kosher system that operates according to halacha and with responsibility to the public. We see this as an important opportunity to expand kosher certification and enhance public trust in Israel's kosher systems."