Kosher Tax (antisemitic Canard) - Certification

Certification

Although companies may apply for kosher certification, the cost of the certification is minuscule, and is more than offset by the advantages of being certified. In 1975 the cost per item for obtaining kosher certification was estimated by The New York Times as being 6.5 millionths of a cent ($0.000000065) per item for a General Foods frozen-food item.

Certification leads to increased revenues by opening up additional markets such as Jews who keep kosher; Muslims who keep halal; and vegans, Seventh-day Adventists, and the lactose intolerant who wish to avoid dairy products (products that are reliably certified as pareve meet this criterion).

According to Berel Wein, "The cost of kashrut certification is always viewed as an advertising expense and not as a manufacturing expense." Dispellers of the "kosher tax" legend argue that if it were not profitable to obtain such certification, then food producers would not engage in the certification process, and that the increased sales resulting from kosher certification actually lower the overall cost per item.

Obtaining certification that an item is kosher is a voluntary business decision made by companies desiring additional sales from consumers (both Jewish and non-Jewish) who look for kosher certification when shopping, and is actually specifically sought by marketing organizations within food production companies. The fees charged for kosher certification are used to support the operation of the certifying bodies themselves, and not Zionist causes or Israel.