The Kashrus Pitfalls of Home Events
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Recently, the level of professionalism has decreased at parties, parlor meetings, tzedakah events, and the like taking place in private homes or backyards. Today’s events often include sweet tables, carving stations, sushi bars, burger bars and alcohol bars—and the list goes on and on. Party planners are often hired to take charge of entire affairs—everything from celebrations at home, events in halls, Shabbos conventions and many other types of gatherings—and arrange for the food to be brought in from different sources. In such a situation, if the supervision of the kashrus is unorganized and haphazard, it can lead to numerous problems. Unfortunately, there have been some hair-raising incidents where serious problems cropped up that were a direct result of the lack of proper supervision. Rabbi Yitzchok Hisiger moderated a panel consisting of three prominent members of the kashrus community – Rabbi Sholem Fishbane, Kashrus Administrator of the Chicago Rabbinical Council; Rabbi Dovid Babad, Dayan of Tarnopol and the director of Tarnopol Kashrus; and Rabbi Yechezkel Auerbach, Kashrus Administrator of the KSA and director of Independent Kashrus Research— to discuss this important issue.
