The cost of kosher – Re’eh
The Jewish dietary laws make up a significant proportion of this sidra. It is one of the marks of a visibly Jewish lifestyle that these laws are scrupulously honoured. They link one of the most banal of daily activities with religion, ensuring that a spirit of holiness permeates every aspect of our lives.
They reinforce Jewish identity and continuity. They are a unifying bond amongst Jews. They teach the importance of mastering our appetites. They help to strengthen the home and to promote family life. They teach kindness to animals.
This, however, some readers will say. is all very well in theory, but in practice it makes life terribly expensive. “Why does kosher have to cost so much?” runs the common argument.
It is true: the add-on costs of kashrut supervision, necessary to ensure that the consumer can eat with a clear conscience, can never be entirely eradicated, and some kosher foods such as meat will always be more expensive. But it must be said that if the kosher market were larger and more Jewish families kept more kashrut, the resultant economies of scale would certainly bring prices down.
