Customers of the Hod Chefer slaughterhouse in Chadera have
been cancelling orders and even returning delivered goods in
the wake of the High Court decision imposing a hechsher
on it. Stores were uncertain of their ability to market meat
prepared under the circumstances.
Chadera Rav Dovid Werner has asked the Chief Rabbinate of
Israel to allow him to discontinue granting a hechsher
to the Hod Chefer slaughterhouse located in his city
following a High Court decision allowing it to retain its
mehadrin status despite its continued sale of
treifos to Jews. In response the Chief Rabbinate asked
Rav Werner to continue his supervision of the site until
other means of prevented the sale of treifos have been
explored.
Recently the High Court handed down a landmark decision in
which it forbade the Chadera Rabbinate to revoke the kashrus
certificate of the slaughterhouse that sold treif
poultry, the refuse of the kosher shechita, to a Jewish
butcher shop that declares itself non-kosher. The High Court
ruled that the Rabbinate does not have the authority to
prohibit the sale or to deny the slaughterhouse kashrus
certification.
Following the High Court decision Rav Werner pointed to
several kashrus problems and to the poisoned atmosphere at
the slaughterhouse since the management received the court's
backing. A team of shochtim has also expressed concern
over management-worker relations and the current atmosphere
at the slaughterhouse.
Following a meeting at which Rav Werner announced his plans
to cease providing certification for the slaughterhouse,
representatives said the shochetim would leave the
slaughterhouse if the Rov resigned.
