Year-end Kosher Surprise!
From Foodnavigator:
‘Kosher’ was the most frequently used claim on new products launched in the US during 2007, while ‘All Natural’ and ‘No Additives or Preservatives’ were amongst the other most popular claims used on new products, reveals data from Mintel’s Global New Products Database (GNPD).
…
The increase in the popularity of kosher products is not only because of a growing market focus on the needs of Jewish consumers.
In a survey conducted by Mintel in 2005, 55 percent of respondents who buy kosher foods said they thought they held a higher mark of health and safety than non-kosher items. Mintel identified demand for dairy- and meat-free products as driving forces behind market growth.
Moreover food that is certified as Kosher is also suitable for Muslims who follow a Halal diet.
I heard today that there was once a study done at Shaarei Tzedek hospital that cholent when eaten on Shabbat caused less of a rise in cholesterol than cholent consumed during the week. I also once heard that the extra soul we receive on Shabbat allows us to eat twice as much, but due to the fact that it departs as Shabbat ends, it sadly isn’t around to help us digest. Anyone who’s seen the vast numbers of falafel/schwarma huts in Jerusalem knows that kosher and healthy aren’t even close to synonymous. Fascinating that folks think so. Better that the thinking it’s an evil Jew tax.
Full story.
Kashrut has nothing to do with nutrition, but it does (or least is supposed to) indicate a certain level of cleanliness and “purity,” which I think is part of why people think it’s somehow healthier.
Then there’s the fact that the hechsher mafia all go around promoting the fact that people believe it’s healthier, which reinforces the belief that it somehow is.
See, for example, the websites of the CRC, StarK and OK, all of which suggest that companies should get hechshered because healh-conscious consumers will be more likely to buy their products:
http://www.crcweb.org/kosher/industry/crcedge.html
http://www.ok.org/Content.asp?ID=17
http://www.star-k.org/ind-advantages-market.htm