Pennsylvania – The Orthodox Union is suing a Pennsylvania-based seafood-importing company, saying it falsely claimed the OU certified its tilapia fish as kosher, highlighting a common problem in the increasingly global kosher marketplace.
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In a suit filed in federal court in Manhattan, the Orthodox Union, a Manhattan not-for-profit with a kosher division, sued Western Edge Inc. for trademark infringement and deceptive trade practice, alleging the unauthorized use of its registered certification mark. The suit alleges that Western Edge produced a fraudulent letter when asked by a Brooklyn food company about the kosher status of its tilapia fillets.
But company officials say the letter came from its fish-production plant in China. “To my understanding there may have been a misunderstanding originating from the producing plant in China about what type of kosher certification they had,” said Donald Kelley, procurement manager for Western Edge. “The only actual participation we had was to forward a letter.”
Kosher food is estimated to be a $13 billion market in the U.S. and has grown by about 15% for each of the past five years, said Menachem Lubinsky, president and chief executive of LUBICOM Marketing Consulting in Brooklyn.
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This isn’t the first forged hashgocha from China. Seem to be a lot of problems there.
What a Shandra!!
The OU is cooperating with them?? why? If it was falsel7y used the full bearing of the law should be brought on tyhe company as an example for others.
No. 2,
What’s a “shandra”? Sounds like an Indian name.
Not for profit. Good one.
#3 Actually, Chandra was the first name of a young Jewish intern at the Federal Bureau of Prisons in D.C. who was r”l murdered by an Latino illegal alien while she was jogging in a park.
I respect the OU as a kashris organization but I have difficulty figuring out how the OU trusts Chinese companies with their symbol on the package. Chinese companies are the sleaziest bunch of people and will cheat you in front of your face and then convince you that what you saw is not correct!
I suggest that all kashris organizations should leave China.
The OU is responsible for their products and I’m glad they caught this problem but how long did it take to catch the problem andhow many things we don’t hear about where the OU covers it up?
The OU does a great job in many areas but as long as this industry will be billions of dollars at stake it will corrput even the best people. This is all about the mighty $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Trademarks must be defended. Suing the violator is the right thing to do.
I think it was a joke and a good one at that – it was lika “shanda” said with a Chinese accent
Kosher or not, tilapia from fish farms in China is NOT something you want to put anywhere near your mouth.
A while back the Times did a piece on these farms along with
video footage. Look it up, watch it, and I think you’ll agree.
Wheres THE KASHRUS ALERT!!?
Even the Frummest of the Frum Charedi Yidden end up eating treif unintentionally.
We shouldn’t use anything from China. Every thing they produce has problems.
The kashrus in Monsey is better? Look what happened there.
The OU runs many charitable organizations for kiruv (NCSY) developmentally delayed (YACHAD) and many other cheseds.
These things happen in kashrus all the time with many kashrus organizations. The way it is being handled is the correct way. Show the offender the error of his ways and you might even get them to really have their products certified in the future.
While I am always alert to another good fight over kashruth, what could possibly be treif about a Talapia unless the Chinese guy packing the fish into the containers was eating a ham sandwich or they processed the fish on the same processing line as catfish or somthing like that.
this stuff happens all the time. sometimes we find out,a lot of times we dont. at one time there were rabbonim (including my own) who wouldnt,or never ate meat,because of hasgacha problems,and i always was impressed by their action, I thought they were lifnim mi shiras hadin. nowadays, i find more and more rabbonim who do the same. and if you wanna know the truth,after speaking to friends of mine who are butchers,and shochtim, and the stories i hear from them,in regards to problems with meat production, I am not so impressed by people who refrain from eating meat. I myself also eat meat,so i am not suggesting people stop from doing so. and also, you cant make a gezirah on the tzibur,if most of the tzibur cant cant abide by it. and of course,the hardest part is breaking a habit.
But truth be told,it’s not such a far fetched idea.
And as far as regular hashgacha goes,the only REAL way to guarantee kashrus,is by having a mashgiach temidi on the premises ALL the time. even the most erliche stores need a mashgiach temidi. va ha maven yuvin.