Liverpool’s main kosher outlet caught selling nonkosher meat and poultry

Marcy Oster

(JTA) — The main outlet for kosher food in Liverpool, England, was caught selling nonkosher meat and poultry.

Rabbi Natan Fagleman of the Liverpool Kashrut Commission said in a letter to residents that “serious breaches of kashrut have taken place at Roseman’s Delicatessen,” the UK Jewish News reported.

The letter called on the store’s patrons not to use “all utensils that have ever been used to cook meat/poultry bought at Roseman’s” and to throw out all food bearing the Liverpool Kashrut Commission symbol. The store also sold prepackaged meat from other suppliers and will continue to do so.

The rabbi said that synagogue and communal kitchens were being restored to kosher status and that he would soon advise on koshering homes, including ovens.

Roseman’s reportedly denied rumors earlier this year that it was closing down.

The Jewish News wrote in an editorial that “Liverpool has been badly hit by the economic downturn and the effects of austerity. Jewish families, who can ill-afford the higher costs of kosher at the best of times, are not immune. Beyond the immediate cost and disruption to families, there must be a serious investigation into how non-kosher food was sold in good faith as kosher. It’s truly scandalous.”