Complaint alleges that famous national brand cut corners in certifying meat as ‘100% Kosher Beef’
By MORDECAI SPECKTOR
A lawsuit filed in May alleges that Hebrew National, the famous manufacturer of hot dogs and other products throughout the United States, is not living up to its self-proclaimed standard of kosher “as defined by the most stringent Jews who follow Orthodox Jewish Law.”
Hebrew National products are certified kosher by Triangle K, and a firm called AER provides the kosher slaughtering services at facilities in the Midwest, according to a class action complaint filed last month in the Dakota County district court of Minnesota.
The lawsuit filed against ConAgra Foods, doing business as Hebrew National, a Delaware corporation, alleges that employees of AER complained to their bosses that they witnessed procedures at slaughterhouses that “rendered the meat being processed not kosher.”
AER leased space from American Foods Group, LLC, which brought cattle to its facilities — including the Dakota Premium Foods plant in South St. Paul — “to be slaughtered, inspected and certified.”
- On its Web site, Hebrew National touts it products for adhering to the strictest standards for kosher meat.
The complaint, which runs to about 65 pages, notes that employees hired to conduct the kosher slaughtering complained to AER supervisor Rabbi Moshe Fyzakov, and to Rabbi Aryeh Ralbag, co-owner of New York City-based Triangle K, with Rabbi Jehoseph Ralbag, but the higher-ups “did little or nothing to correct the transgressions. Rather, the persons making the complaints were terminated or otherwise threatened with adverse retaliation, such as job transfers to other facilities or states. In turn, non-kosher meat was delivered to ConAgra and packaged, labeled and sold to the public [including the plaintiffs in the lawsuit] as strictly 100% kosher.”
Hart L. Robinovitch, lead attorney for the plaintiffs, told the American Jewish World, that ConAgra Foods has asked that the class action complaint be moved to federal court. Robinovitch, who is a partner in the Zimmerman Reed law firm, based in their Scottsdale, Ariz., office, said that he has not decided whether or not to move to have the case remanded back to the Minnesota district court.
Regarding the substance of the complaint, Robinovitch said today: “Don’t get me wrong here: We’re not saying that they’re passing off pork as kosher products… but in the complaint, as you can see, we went through the different elements and the different requirements for meat to be considered kosher, in terms of the way the cows are slaughtered, and the meat is prepared; and based on our investigation, there were certain things that weren’t conducted properly, in a systematic way, from the way cows were slaughtered, to the way the lungs were inspected or not inspected for imperfections, as is required to meet the standard that the meat is 100 percent kosher,” as defined by the most stringently observant Orthodox Jews following kashrut (Jewish dietary laws).
Robinovitch would not say how many AER employees he has spoken with or who they are. He allowed that his firm did their “due diligence” and spoke with people at various plants that supply meat to Hebrew National.
In fact, the American Jewish World has been hearing complaints from AER employees, and former employees, for more than two years, about deficiencies in the kosher slaughtering operations. It has been difficult to write a conclusive story, because many of the AER employees did not want to go on the record and risk losing their jobs. Former employees even expressed fear for their personal safety, if they were identified in a story.
AER has been hiring men in Israel to work as kosher slaughterers and checkers. One such person, who visited the AJW offices in August 2010, said that AER was treating its employees “like dirt,” housing them in apartments where they slept four to a room on mattresses on the floor. AER “would cheat on the kashrut issue,” said this employee, who displayed IDs from the Dakota Premium Foods plant, and the PM Beef Holdings slaughterhouse in Windom, Minn. The photo IDs both identified him as “rabbi.” AER also did kosher slaughter at plants in Green Bay, Wisc., and in Nebraska.
The Israeli employee of AER also stated that he was paid partial wages in the U.S., and collected most of his wages by sending a friend or family member to the town of Bnei Brak, Israel, where an AER associate doled out the money.
Regarding the class action lawsuit, Robinovitch explained that the plaintiffs thought they were buying products that were 100 percent kosher. Forcing Hebrew National to stop deceiving consumers about the kosher status of their products is “probably our primary reason for filing the lawsuit,” he said.
A secondary aim of the lawsuit, according to Robinovitch, is to seek recompense for the plaintiffs who overpaid for Hebrew National products, which carried a premium price tag based on their reputed kosher quality.
“We will prove that there was a standard overcharge on these products and therefore we will seek monetary relief” for whomever the court determines deserves money back, he said.
Teresa A. Paulsen, ConAgra vice president for communication and external affairs, responded to the AJW’s request for comment on the class action lawsuit. “While we can’t comment on pending litigation, we stand behind the quality of Hebrew National and its Kosher status,” she stated in an e-mail.
The American Jewish World will publish an expanded version of this story in the June 22 print edition.
I erceived a forwarded email regarding the above story that might shed some light on the allegations, it reads as follows:
It has come to our attention that a false and slanderous email/article about the Kashrus
of Hebrew National, under the strict Rabbinical Supervision of Triangle K, has
been sent out.
Let us emphatically state that we thoroughly investigate and seriously look into, any and all Kashrus complaints which come to our attention.
Over the years, we have enacted various precautions , regulations , and
enhancements, to insure the Kashrus of the Hebrew National brand.
This includes unexpected oral tests and exams of the Halachic material required
to be mastered , and the constant scrutiny of the level of piety and fear-of –
heaven of our slaughterers and lung inspectors. Anyone found not to be up-to-par
with our standards, has been terminated . All these are documented facts.
Clearly these lies are coming from persons found to be below-par, and consequently
were duly removed.
These disgruntled and frustrated workers are now attempting to make themselves
righteous, by making bogus Kashrus claims.
We strongly stand behind our Triangle K Kashrus symbol, on the Hebrew National
brand, to be 100% strictly Kosher.
Rabbi Aryeh Ralbag – Triangle K Kosher Supervision
Why are they suing ConAgra’s Hebrew National Brand?
ConAgra does not do kosher slaughter. ConAgra buys kosher beef under the supervision of the Triangle- K Kosher Supervision and the management of A.E.R. kosher slaughtering services at Beef Processing plants in the Midwest.
The suit is claiming that some of the beef purchased by ConAgra as kosher is not kosher. Why sue ConAgra? Could it be that ConAgra has deep pockets?
Who benefits from this class action lawsuit against ConAgra’s Hebrew National brand?
The lawyer, Hart Robinovitch and the law firm of Zimmerman Reed.
If they have a claim that the meat is not kosher by Orthodox standards why don’t they take the complaint to a Jewish court called a Bais Din?
They must sue ConAgra because ConAgra is selling beef products as Kosher that could not be Kosher and therefore they could be lying to customers.
It is true however that ConAgra is not responsible for that because they Hired Triangle-K and AER Services to provide the Kashruth and they are responsible for doing the right job.
If they can prove that AER and Triangle-K are not doing the right job ConAgra should sue them and hire a new Kosher provider
×× ×™ עבדתי ×©× ×›×©×•×—×˜ ובודק
בפיקוחו של הרב רלבג
הרב רלבג ×œ× ×חר××™ ×•×œ× ×™×•×“×¢ מה קורה
×•×©× ×œ× ×›×©×¨ × ×§×•×“×”
×× ×™ ×œ× ×ž×ž×•×¨×ž×¨ ור×יתי שלו כשר וחזרתי לישר×ל
×›×•×œ× ×™×•×“×¢×™× ×–×ת .
I worked there as a shochet and checks Under the supervision of Rabbi Ralbag Rabbi Ralbag not responsible for and do not know what happens where non-kosher I’m not bitter and I saw his minister and returned to Israel Everybody knows that.
i too was a shochet there..
i read the class action law suit, and tho i am not involved, i can testify, that EVERYONE in AER knows it’s true and knew it was happening.
if someone complained about an issue, he was moved to somewhere where he wouldnt see it or a different plant untill he found some more problems there and then again shipped elsewhere.. tests whether oral or not, have nothing to do with the problems being discussed. the slaughter is improper the inspection of lungs is non-existent!
there was a guy that didnt observe judiasm working as a “shochet”..
as an insider i know that there is evidence on video’s.. ppl are scared to release the video’s tho.. i guess now that they have a lawyer representing the prosecution, ppl will come out.
again, ralbag knew. fyzakov knew, ben david knew, the head staff member of each plant knew.
they head staff member would always say “listen i know, but this is hebrew national, they dont care”
no-one dared speak out of fear of their job or even safety.
The English translation of Mane’s comment is incorrect. It should read:
“I worked there as a slaughterer and a checker under the supervision of Rabbi Ralbag. Rabbi Ralbag does not take responsibility and does not know what goes on there, and it is not kosher there, period. I am not disgruntled, I saw that it is not kosher and I returned to Israel. Everybody knows this.”
I am an old retired public school administrator who also happens to be Jewish, living in Lubbock, Texas. I have eaten hundreds, if not thousands, of Hebrew National hot dogs over the years. I do not know if there is any truth to the allegations that have been brought forth by the people in this article, but if there is any actual truth to the allegations, then I support the need to double check to make sure that kosher law is actually being followed. I look forward to reading further updates on this issue.
If the complaint were to be “adjudicated” soley by the Bas Din, those of us consumers who have claims under the class action suit(s) would have no “guaranteed” opportunity to be compensated for our losses.
Stacy Harris
Publisher/Executive Editor/Media Critic
Stacy’s Music Row Report
http://stacyharris.com
I am deeply saddened by this article. I had no idea that this was happening. But for those of us that take our religion and it’s law’s set forth by our G-D, seriously, it is just heart breaking and mortifying.
I am not Jewish. I am Muslim. But Islamically, we have a diet different than Christian’s. Where I lived, there was no Halaal food, other than a few food’s that claimed to be Kosher. There are a few difference between Kosher requirments and Islamic Halaal requirment’s; However, if a Muslim cannot get food that is Halaal, then turning to Kosher food is the best thing to do. My heart goes out to the Jewish people who do indeed follow the law of diatery Kosher food’s. Im also very hurt that I believed I was eating Kosher all these years in lui of Islamic Halaal food.
For people who may no nothing or very little about Kosher diat or Islamic Halaal food’s. Believe me, this is a serious matter. Many people today still try very hard to follow what we tought and demaned to do religously.
This is just sicking and has to be stopped! I am hurt and deeply saddened for the Jewish people and those Muslim people who are trying to follow the rules of their religion. It is something scared. To be dupped on this subject for greed…laziness…or for whatever reason these people are not doing their jobs and could actually careless of it’s importance and their own religion.
The saving Grace in all of this is that if you are given food that a person tells you that it is Halaal and it is not, then the sin is on them, not you. But it doesnt stop the anger in the fact that you are suppose to be looking out for our safty and best interest, and your now nothing more than a lier whom we can no longer trust.
When I lived in Po-Dunk Texas, I practically lived on HebrewNational Hot Dogs. As far as meet is concerned.
Im very hurt and very angery.
I do hope first of all that the alligation’s are not true. But, if they are, they should have to pay dearly.
Strangly enough, I was just reading Ahadith today that one major sin, is a person who is selling their good and wares and tells a lie in order to sell them. ALLAH will not even look at them, or aknoledge them in any way, other than to send them to the hell fire.
How sad all the way around.
I also worked there and I know exactly what happens. The main problem here is that in kashruth the Rabbi decides. But in Hebrew National the one who decide is AER Services only based in economic conveniences. AER has the final word. They decide who works and where works, and such a thing can never guarantee the Kosher status of the Product. When the Rabbi and The company, either Conagra or AER Services come to an argument the company has the final word. Another problem is that the Rabbis who work for AER are always under pressure to give a minimum quantity of Kosher animmals. Conagra signed an agreement with AER that the rabbis must to provide a 70% of the animals as Kosher. And not always is possible because the plants who provide meat for Conagra buy very bad cattle and the Schochet has to pass non kosher animmals as Kosher because he fears of being fired for not providing the 70% .
There are plants like Nebraska and Green Bay where they slaugh 200 per hour and it is imposible to check the lungs properly, and again they have to pass non Kosher as Kosher because the pressure they have. Conagra pay AER Services to provide personal to work but they don’t provide enough people. I think that Hebrew National is not 100 % Kosher and Conagra should know what is going here. Conagra think that Triangle K follows the most strict rules and it is totally false. The consumers of Hebrew national are non Jews or Secular Jews.
kosher.
For our Muslim friends, nothing here seems to make the hot dogs much less halal, merely less kosher in circumstances where a lot of Jews expect kashrus
Researching all one can on this underlines the importance of reading labels: I bought some ‘all beef’ sausages at Trader Joe’s last week and just before I came to cook them looked at the small print and saw that to Trader Joes, “all beef” means “contains pork”. I complained about this deception to Trader Joes, whose response was that whatever we claim on the label, you still have to read the fine print to make sure we are not trying to dupe you with claims about being “all beef”. Interestingly, I once had this experience with an apparently bad batch of Nathans hot dogs being got rid of, cheap, in my local supermarket.
Is the problem one of scalability? Once you scale up, you can’t keep kashrus any more because it is impractical if you want to meet end-results?
This is tame,tame,tame. Beyound recourse.
I’m 70 yrs old and have eaten these Hebrew National since I was young.
I’ve been only kosher hot dogs for decades because they are kosher and they’re not? Not happy. How do I find a claim form?