The Food Industry

The modern food industry makes use of many “food additives,” such as emulsifiers, stabilizers, humectants, anti-caking agents, flavor enhancers, and food colorings. Let us explain further: when one wants to combine two substances that by nature do not combine, such as water and oil for the production of chocolate or dairy desserts, an “emulsifier” is used, which binds and joins the two. Since sometimes, even after an emulsifier has been used, the two substances tend to separate, a “stabilizer” is used, which keeps the substances joined. To preserve the moisture of products that tend to dry out, “humectants” are used. When one wants to prevent food from crystallizing so that it remains attractive, soft, and flexible, “anti-caking” agents are used. When one wants to turn a liquid product into a thick one, such as a dairy dessert made from liquid milk, thickeners such as gelatin are used. When one wants food products to keep for a long time, preservatives and antioxidants are used. Flavor enhancers are also used, whose function is to accentuate certain flavors and dissipate the sensation of others.

Almost all of these basic industrial products are manufactured abroad. Therefore, when they are plant-based, they generally raise no halakhic questions. But when they are produced from animals, they are generally forbidden, because they are produced from non-kosher animals, such as pigs and sheratzim (creeping creatures), or from kosher animals that were not slaughtered properly.^¹

When wine or wine vinegar of gentiles is mixed into food, there is a problem of stam yeinam (ordinary gentile wine), such that if there is not sixty times its volume against it, the food is forbidden (above 34:9; SA YD 134:2-3). When ingredients from dairy products are mixed into food, one must check whether they are forbidden because of ḥalav nokhrim (gentile milk), and whether the product remains parve.

The halakha is that since the consumer is not able to know all the food additives and their halakhic status, responsible supervision is required for all industrial food products, and without supervision, one may not eat industrial food.

Having learned the halakhic rule for the consumer, we will now explain the details of the laws of food additives.