The  Basur  IS  Asur

Chalav Yisrael

By Shaindy Goldstein

Food is an important part of a Jew’s life, besides sustention the Torah teaches us to use the physical food and convert it to something spiritual, or Kadosh. This is done through restrictions and halachot that are applied. These laws are called kashrut. The Torah forbids the consumption of food that is not kosher, or tref. The gemarah states, “It is repugnant for a righteous person to eat forbidden foood.” 

            One of the many ways food can become kosher is through the supervision of another Jew to make sure all the rules of Kashrut are abided by. One of the many types of food that needs Jewish supervision is dairy products. The consumption of any milk product without supervision is an issur diorisa, and halachot must be treated as such. The mishna avodah zarah states, האנה רוסא ןירוסא ןיאו םירוסא םוכע לש םירבד ולאו.”

 “.והואר לארשי ןיאו ז”ע בלחש בלח “The following items of a gentile are forbidden, but it is not forbidden to derive benefit from them, milk which was milked by a gentile and a Jew didn’t see him.”  

            The amoraim in the gemarah questioned the din because the milk, especially during that time, went directly from the cow to the kitchen table. What could be the problem? The fear was that, if unsupervised the gentile milking the cow would mix non-kosher milk in with the kosher milk.  Since the fear is the gentile will cheat the Jew, if a Jew supervises, even though he’s not active in the milking process the milk is kosher.  The talmud states that as long as the Jew is in the room, even if he didn’t witness the milking process the milk is Kosher. It is assumed that if the Jew was in the room, the gentile would be afraid to adulterate the milk in case the Jew turns around and catches him. The shulchan Aruch Yoreh De’ah simpy states, “It is forbidden to use milk milked by a non Jew if it’s possible non kosher milk could be mixed in.”

             If it is certain that the only milk that was used was kosher milk, and no other tref milk, then is unsupervised milk Kosher? This topic is greatly debated, some say if the decree was made solely for the purpose of protecting the milk, if the milk was for sure unadulterated then it’s mutar. Some contradict that and say it was a “blanket ban,” even though the situation, from where this Halacha originated may not still be existing, we must still keep the laws. Many rabannim bring up the Halacha from the Talmud, “וריתהל רחא “.ןינמ ךירצ ןינמבש רבד  “If something was forbidden by a Rabinnic group, it requires another rabbinic group greater in number and wisdom to release the prohibition.” Even if a din was made for a specific time or reason even if it no longer applies, the obligation to abide by the prohibition still stands, because there isn’t a group of rabannim equal in greatness and number to nullify the decree.

            The Meiri states, the law could be nullified, if biet din saw the law could be inapplicable in the future. If the condition disappeared the prohibition wasn’t meant to apply. The Tosafot goes one step further by saying, if the rabbanim made a halacha based on a danger at that time, if the danger disappears so dose the Halacha. The radbaz claims the ban on unsupervised milk was functional, so if the milk is clearly unadulterated it’s mutar. The pri chadash agrees with the radbaz and drank unsupervised milk. Many other Rabbanim  dispute davar she’bminian and say if the reason for a prohibition no longer exists, another biet din is not required to annul the prohibition.

            Many Rabbanim such as rashi disagree and states that davar she’bminian does apply, and halachot that have that status must be upheld. The Chatam Sofer, and the aruch ha’shulchan state that the rabanim took on this Halach as a geder, to take the mitzvah an extra step. The halacha of chalav yisroel took on the status of “neder deoritah” and not derabannan. This means it has a higher position and must be upheld. Either way drinking unsupervised milk is either asur deoritah or asur derabannan.

            It has been established that milk must be supervised hence it’s not contaminated, in order for it to be qualified for Jewish consumption. Rav Moshe Feinstein raises the question as to whether or not the supervision has to be Jewish.

            Rav Moshe states that something that has unmistakably transpired even without witness, is considered by halacha as if it happened. Therefore Government inspection is a valid substitution for Jewish supervision. Since it is positive that the dairy producers are afraid of Government penalties if they adulterate the milk, it is considered as if the Jew was watching the process, and the milk is acceptable.

            Many people challenge this psack questioning the validity of Government inspection. What if the Price to adulterate the milk is less then the cost of the fine? What if the inspector is susceptible to bribery? Rav Moshe answers that one must take in to account the cost of paying the bribe for the inspector, plus the bribe to all the workers who participated in the fraud, so they won’t tell. Also keep in mind that the inspector visits the plant three to four times a week so multiply that whole sum by four. Would it still be beneficial to the owner of the dairy plant to adulterate the milk? It would also not be beneficial to adulterate the milk because the calves can’t process any other type of milk besides it’s mother’s.

            Some still question just how thorough the Government inspectors are in comparison to Jewish supervisors. The Government inspectors’ make surprise visits to each dairy plant three to four times a week. The inspectors take many samples of the milk and test to make sure the milk meets the standards of purity, through bacteria and fat content. Any change in the type of milk would be noticed, and penalized right away.

            R’ Moshe writes, ....

And therefore he who wishes to rely (on government inspection) and to be lenient, has good cause and is permitted to do so, as indeed most observant Jews do, as do many Rabbis; and it is forbidden to say they are not acting in accordance with the din. Yet, for one who is a “spiritual” person it is appropriate to be strict…and I myself am strict in this regard.

            Although Rav Moshe permits the consumption of government supervised milk he doesn’t drink it himself. He writes he respects and understands the people who do drink such milk, yet if you want to be a spiritual person it is proper to drink chalav yisroel.

            Other dairy products made from milk such as, cheese, yogurt, butter, cottage cheese etc. must be chalav yisroel, or have some type of supervision. All these types of products have been prepared in some way, which leaves room for mistakes in kashrut. 

            Many people keep Chalav Yisroel, and many people don’t. It is important to know, understand, and appreciate the difference, and not to pass judgement on either group of people. It is also important to be able to understand the circumstances to be able to make a decision between which one to keep  

Works Cited

 Gemarrah , Mishnah , Shulchan Aruch – Yoreh De’ah ,  Rav Moshe Feinstein- Igeret Moshe