The Messenger  January-February

Dear Friends,

2011 promises to be a good year for the Conservative Movement.This year, one of our most inspiring projects, Magen Tzedek, which was begun in 2007, is moving forward into a new and exciting stage!Not just a new certification for kosher food – the forthcoming Magen Tzedek symbol represents our dedication to ensure that Jewish responsibility and awareness are applied to the process of production of the food we eat.It is our statement that, as Jews, we concern ourselves with Jewish ritual dietary traditions, and at the same time, we commit ourselves to protecting workers, animals and the Earth in the production of food.Ritual and ethics come together to form the bedrock of Jewish practice and of Jewish spiritual teaching.

Kosher foods that will carry the Magen Tzedek symbol on their packaging will signify that the food in the package has been prepared with the highest degree of integrity in regard to a variety of important issues: employee wages and benefits, health and safety, animal welfare, corporate transparency and environmental impact.

Drafting of the Magen Tzedek standards was led by Dr. Joe Regenstein, Professor of Food Science at Cornell University, under the supervision of two Conservative rabbis, Michael Siegel and Morris Allen.

In order to move this project forward, from theory to practice, Magen Tzedek is now working with Social Accountability Accreditation Services (SAAS) to develop policies and procedures needed for sustainable implementation of the Magen Tzedek standards and to design and implement an effective system for verifying that practices are just and sustainable. SAAS is an independent, not-for-profit accreditation agency that accredits and monitors organizations as certifiers of compliance with social standards.It is affiliated with Social Accountability International (SAI), a non-governmental, multi-stakeholder organization established to advance the human rights of workers and the health of enterprises by promoting decent work conditions, labor rights, and corporate social responsibility through voluntary standards.SAI is also among the world's leading social compliance training organizations, and has provided training to over 20,000 people.

The projected date for the completion of the Magen Tzedek field tests is March of 2011, and if all goes as expected, we should be seeing the first actual Magen Tzedek symbols on products on the shelves of our stores and supermarkets before the end of 2011!

We know that many people, Jewish and non-Jewish, look for kosher certifications on food packaging.Now, in the very near future, we will have the opportunity to have them look for the ethical kosher symbol as well, and we will have the satisfaction of knowing that our Conservative Movement – the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Rabbinical Assembly – were the leaders in this inspiring project!

I take this opportunity to wish you and your loved ones a happy and a healthy 2011!

Rabbi Gilah Dror