The KLBD held a Mashgichim Conference last week for Rabbinic Inspectors, who supervise food products, raw materials and ingredients in factories worldwide. The conference was attended by Dayonim, Rabbonim, Mashgichim and the Certification Unit office team.

The KLBD currently certifies over 1,700 factories in 70 countries worldwide, and the conference was a unique opportunity for Dayonim, Rabbonim and Mashgichim to share experiences and expertise, so as to further enhance the high standards of KLBD Kosher Certification in this increasingly complex field.

The first session of the day, was an open forum – led by Rabbi Jeremy Conway, Director of KLBD, and Rabbi Akiva Osher Padwa, Director of Certification, where the Mashgichim were given an opportunity to address and discuss their concerns and present Shailos to the panel.

This was followed by an in-depth Shiur given by the Rosh Beis Din, Dayan Menachem Gelley, on the subject of Ne’emonus Nochri with the practical Halachic ramifications in the Kashrus field.

Over lunch, KLBD was honoured to receive Divrei Brochoh and Chizuk from Dayan Yonason Abraham who stressed the great responsibility that rests upon the shoulders of each Mashgiach and the tremendous impact the actions of Mashgichim have on our community. The conference was also addressed by the Chief Executive of the US, Dr Steven Wilson, who expressed the appreciation of the community for the work KLBD do in the promotion of Kashrus.

A highlight of the event was a question and answer session with Dr Moshe Rosenfeld, Chief Chemist and Research Consultant at KLBD, who stressed the importance of having good scientific understanding and technical knowledge of the factories during an inspection. Dr Rosenfeld alerted the gathering to recent trends in the oil and glycerine markets towards using recycled cooking oils (UCOs), which is a great Kashrus concern, and how one must be vigilant about adulteration of all sorts of raw materials. Dr Rosenfeld also discussed recent developments and world trends of various sensitive ingredients including Triacetin, Fusel Oils and Fatty Acids.

An invaluable session on the best way to conduct a factory audit was led by Rabbi Shimon Black, KLBD Factory Audits Manager, which enhanced a Mashgiach’s auditing toolbox with valuable pointers.

The conference was closed by Rabbi Conway who emphasised the importance of Nekadesh es Shimcho baOlom… – creating a Kiddush Hashem – particularly when travelling to far off climes, and remembering the achrayos of the Avodas HaKodesh we do Letzorech Haklal.

The conference was generally acknowledged a great success and served as a powerful tool to reinforce the high standards of Hashgocho at the KLBD. Thanks were extended to the Michael Sobell JCC – Jewish Care for their generous help in hosting the event.

About KLBD:

KLBD Kosher Certification (also known as the Kashrus Division of the London Beth Din) is one of the world’s leading Kosher certification agencies, operating in 70 countries across six continents and certifying many multi‑national food producers and raw material manufacturers alike. KLBD is committed to offering a professional and affordable global Kosher certification with rabbinic experts, food technologists and food chemists working round the clock alongside representatives and agents around the world.