What It Means to Have a Kosher Certified Product, and Why It Matters
What does Chalav Yisroel certification mean?

What It Means to Have a Kosher Certified Product, and Why It Matters

Who doesn't like coins? Plus when you add chocolate to the mix, it's virtually impossible to resist them. Especially if you're known to have a sweet tooth! But even if you don't, chocolate coins take right you back to your childhood. Giving chocolate coins or chocolate money to children is a popular tradition in many parts of the world, especially during holidays like Christmas and Hannukah. Gold-wrapped chocolate coins seem to be the most popular kind, but at Chocolate gelt you can find all sorts of colors ranging from silver to marine blue and turquoise.

The tradition of giving money or Chanukah gelt to Jewish children dates back from the 17th century. Then in the 20th century, in America, chocolatiers started making chocolate money and created the concept of Chocolate Gelt which has stuck to this day.

But it's not just children who enjoy eating chocolate coins or 'chocolate gelt'.

At Chocolate gelt, we are dedicated to making the best milk chocolate coins made from premium ingredients, like Belgian milk chocolate and Kosher milk chocolate coins, that will satisfy even the most demanding chocolate connoisseurs. Now, what's special about our coins that you won't be able to find elsewhere is that Chocolate gelt has a special kosher certification of Cholov Yisroel (Chalav Yisrael).

What is Kosher certification of Cholov Yisroel (Chalav Yisrael) and why is it important?

Kosher foods are the foods consumed under kashrut, which is a Jewish dietary law. According to Kosher the animal products like milk, eggs and meat of certain animals are allowed for human consumption while others are not. In order for a food to be considered Kosher, it has to be certified by a reputable rabbi or a kashrut supervision organization.

As for the dairy products (Chalav Yisrael), under the Jewish law, a Jewish supervisor (so-called mashgiach) needs to be present during the milking process to make sure that the milk is purely kosher. All Kosher milk has to come from Kosher animals. Kosher animals include those with "cloven hooves" that "chew the cud." That includes cows, sheep, goats and deer, while non-kosher animals are pigs, camels, horses, rabbits, etc. What this means is that, in order for milk to be purely kosher, it has to be taken from one animal species at a time, under no circumstances can it be mixed with anything else. That being said, milk produced with such supervision is called Chalav Yisrael.

Why is Kosher certification so important?

First of, the very word Kosher means "proper" or "fit" in Jewish. So, kosher milk is the milk that is proper and pure enough for human consumption. According to the Jewish traditions, there is a concern that milk from non-kosher animals might be mixed with kosher milk, or some food additives and pre-processed substances are added to either increase its quantity or its shelf life. The problem is, you don't really know which milk is Kosher and which is not. Why? Because these substances, according to the food product regulations, don't have to be indicated on the label because they are used in such small quantities.

However, the milk produced in such a way is not considered pure, and these additives, however small, can render milk non-kosher. This means that about 80% of all milk products sold in the supermarkets are considered non-kosher. It is, therefore, a real challenge nowadays to find real quality kosher milk.

Jewish tradition puts a huge emphasis on the importance of using only Chalav Yisrael because of the profound spiritual, but also physical effects, that consuming Kosher products can have on a person. Many people will go to great lengths to obtain Kosher milk because of the numerous positive effects that it has on health. Kosher is therefore one of the hallmarks of eating Jewishly.

Kosher certified products have to be approved by a kosher certification agency which grants a hechsher. Hechsher is a product certification given by a rabbi, qualifying foods items that comply with the requirements of halakha. Kosher-certified products are typically labelled with (OK) plus a D symbol if they contain dairy.

When your products are Kosher certified, like our Chocolate gelt is, customers know that you sell products that are made under Kosher food laws, which ensures purity, premium quality as well as cleanliness of products. Kosher certification means that all ingredients as well as the process of preparing the products are in compliance with the strict kosher laws.

That is why Chocolate Gelt offers Cholov Yisroel certified milk, which ensure that our shoppers and their children get only the best and the purest Chocolate gelt gifts money can buy.

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