Which bugs are kosher

Even the Chachomim are not careful enough in this matter. Halacha requires us to check all fruits and vegetables where it would be normal to find insects. There are different opinions as to what exactly is the minimum percentage.

There are a number of factors that contribute to insect infestation; the two biggest are climate and use of pesticides. For this reason, not all produce is alike. Levels of infestation may vary country by country, or even state by state, depending on the climate and amounts of pesticides used. This is why we are seeing a recent renewed emphasis on this matter. The use of pesticides is on the decline due to new awareness of toxicity.

Weaker and less potent chemicals are now used in place of the harsher pesticides of previous decades, resulting in an increase in the level of insect infestation. It was also suggested that the municipal water supply chain is halachically identical to a cistern in which case there would be no prohibition on consuming such bugs.

According to the latter approach, however, the water would only be permitted when drunk directly from the faucet — certainly an unrealistic arrangement for a household that regularly drinks tap water. There are those in New York City who continue to filter their water as a result of this controversy.

Shach Y. For more on bugs and water see: Darkei Teshuva , Rabbi Ari N. Enkin, a resident of Ramat Beit Shemesh, is a researcher and writer of contemporary halachic issues. Drinking on Purim Rabbi Ari Enkin. Unlike other natural disasters, the locust swarms have evoked online recipes of fried, spicy or skewered locusts. Obe site describes the insects as a popular snack, somewhat like popcorn in ancient times.

So, are the locusts that flew to Israel this week kosher or not? Maybe they are, maybe they aren't. To be safe, some rabbis want to end this custom of locust munching. All halakhic Jewish legal literature deals with eating locusts, from the Mishnah oral Jewish laws through the Talmud, Rashi and Maimonides to the Jewish code of laws and is still controversial.

If there were three or more insects in the food, we have to assume that it was infested with insects and must be sifted, strained etc. If there are only parts of insects, they are considered nullified in sixty. However, whenever possible, a person must try to remove the insect parts as well. This is the reason why in Israel many people who have found insecdt parts in their flour always sift it. In most countries, flour is pre-sifted. Microscopic insect parts do not concern us halachically.

The following FDA list shows the maximum givernment tolerance when it comes to insects found in food, and illustrates clearly how we often are not aware of what we are eating. There is a company in Israel that grows their produce in sand, which has proved effective in avoiding insect infestation even in leafy vegetable. In the U. The chart on page will explain how to check for bugs in most cases.