unzammechat:"What is the kashrut's take on abominations of natu

[richardf8]

unzammechat asked in a comment on this post:
"What is the kashrut's take on abominations of nature?"

I once asked the Orthodox Union what effect pig DNA would have on the kosher status of a fruit, vegetable, or kosher animal into whose genome it was spliced. This was their answer.


23rd Day in Adar I, 5760 Tuesday, February 28, '00

Send comments/questions to: Kosherq@OU.Org

Re: Genetic Modification and Kashruth

Thank you for checking with the OU on your Kashruth question.

The past decade have seen a revolution in the production of food growing. Through gene splicing, scientists can now transfer virtually any characteristic of a living plant or animal to another organism. The new gene is introduced into the plant (or animal) tissue via bacterium.

Are there any Halachic ramifications involved in the permissibility of such bio-engineered foods?

For instance: Is there a problem with a potato that resists disease with the help of a chicken gene?

The Halachic implications of bio-engineered foods with possible genes from non-kosher sources has been studied at length by the Orthodox Union's Rabbinical Kashruth Advisory Board, headed by the renowned Rabbi Israel Belsky of Mesivta Torah V'daath and Rabbi Hershel Schechter of Yeshiva University.

The conclusion of this Rabbinical Board was that such genetic manipulation does not present any Kashruth problems whatsoever for the following reason.

The non kosher gene is not implanted into the potato plant itself. Rather the non-kosher gene serves as a chemical formulation which is on memory much like a magnetic tape.

This formulation is then reproduced onto materials taken from yeast and then introduced into the plant via bacterium. THE REPRODUCED GENE NOW IN THE PLANT IS THUS FROM A TOTALLY KOSHER SOURCE.

None of the original chicken material appears in the plant product, i.e. the potato. The term 'Botel' is therefor inadequate, because there is nothing there to become 'Botel'. There never was any chicken material in the potato in the first place.

Does this mean that all bio-engineered products are inherently Kosher?

Absolutely not. It is important that we differentiate between a gene-splicing technique, which is acceptable, and bio-engineered ingredients which require strict supervision. Whereby in the past, ingredients used to be made by either chemical synthesis or by extraction from fruits. These ingredients are now produced by microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi.

Industrial bio-technology products (also called fermentation products) can be grouped into three categories: enzymes, ingredients/additives, and cultures.

Briefly, all microbially-derived bio-technology products are produced by growing an appropriate microorganism in huge quantities. This is done in large vat-type equipment called fermentors. Growth takes place in the growth medium i.e. water, to which carefully selected nutrients are added. During or at the end of their growth, the microorganisms release their desired products in the growth medium.

Among the kashruth considerations involved are: the nutrients in the growth medium, the ingredients added during processing and previous uses of the equipment. In short. all enzymes, ingredients/additives, and cultures would require Kashruth certification.

Please don't hesitate to contact us again should you have any further questions. With best wishes for a healthy winter, and a prosperous year, we remain,

Sincerely,

The Web(be) Rebbe 0a611


My own take is that, apparently, when dealing with certification customers the size of Monsanto, Cargill, and Archer Daniels Midland, the Orthodox Union is willing to apply false analogies and otherwise tortured exegesis to rule in their favor.

My own thoughts on the matter are as follows:
We don't know why the Kosher laws exist. They're there, and our speculation ranges from health concerns, to questions of ritual use of non-kosher animals by non-yahwistic cults, to the belief that God makes rules "just because." But given that we don't KNOW what those rules are doing there, we don't know, when we transfer a gene that codes for a given protein from the genome of a non-kosher animal to a kosher food-source, that we aren't transferring the very reason that particular prohibition. We cannot do such a thing without, to some degree, second-guessing the intent of the Kosher laws.

Additionally, it seems that if one cannot sow different kinds of seeds in the same field, sowing different kinds of things in the same seed can hardly be permissible.

As for the OU's "Magnetic Tape" analogy, by this reasoning the word "fuck" would cease to be a swear-word upon being recorded. They ignore the fact that the message being recorded is part of what makes a pig a pig - DNA is not a recording so much as it is a template. Regardless of how you generate the template, the thing you will get if you follow it completely is a pig.

In the interest of full disclosure, I am basically reformed, not orthodox, in my practice. I do not eat forbidden animals, but I also don't worry about sh'chita - so long as the animal did not die of natural causes, I'm fine with any method of slaughter that leads to rapid brain death and does not taint the meat. I buy organic meat, and talk to my suppliers about the abattoirs they use. I avoid buying meat processed at the "big plants." I mix milk and meat freely, but do not cook mammal meat in dairy (though I may add dairy after cooking is complete, as with stroganoffs). I find the ruling that Chicken and Dairy should be kept separate bizarre on the face of it. I am much laxer in restaurants than at home.

Comments

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

When you mentioned sowing seeds, my mind was still on pigs, so I thought of the other pronunciation of "sow." Heh.

I have to say, tho: your practice sounds more arbitrary than the OU's. Seems to me that one would either abandon such principles altogether or attempt to follow them as consistently as possible.

[richardf8]

Yes, but I don't presume to tell Jews worldwide how to practice; they do. And I don't think they're asking the right questions.

Also practice is not an all-or-nothing matter. My practice suits my understanding of the dietary laws as they are laid out in the Torah. But no, if I inadvertently allow a bit of bacon-grease to cross my lips, I'm not going to say "oh well, screwed that up! Might as well go to a pig-roast!"

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

Oh, inadvertent is another matter. I wouldn't expect you to become that cartoon character who felt obliged to turn from a straight-as-an-arrow life to a life of crime when he inadvertently tore a Do-Not-Remove label.

And I agree that the OU is making some bad judgment.

[unzammechat.livejournal.com]

Ugh... nobody important has any backbone anymore...

This actually reminds me of the "Desperate Vegeterians Declare Cow a Fruit" Onion article, except... not fake. Also there's that whole selling-out-cultural-identity thing... -.-

[richardf8]

Yes, I remember that article well. A while back I provided computer support to a group of people who did things like develop food safety monitoring equipment for abattoirs and packing facilities, and that article was posted all over the place. The same group also developed agar-plates for use in genomic R&D (i.e. Genetic Engineering). It's fascinating technology, but, as is so often the case with technologies being developed by corporations, is being foisted too quickly on an unwitting public.