The Laboratory for the Investigation of Food Infestation,
part of the scientific department of the Institute for
Agricultural Research According to the Torah, is currently
expanding its activities. The institute provides professional
scientific services to the country's kashrus systems
through laboratory investigations and consultation services
in the fields of insect and worm infestation of basic food
items, including fruits and vegetables.
The laboratory staff warns that although the food industry
uses modern technology in its growing methods, manufacturing
and packaging, there are still many serious problems of bug
and worm infestation in food marketed today.
The laboratory recently disclosed that sealed hothouses,
which are considered insect free, are not totally free of
insects. The main problem is with flies, that are relatively
easy to rinse off. Leafy vegetables which are grown in such
hothouses are surely preferable to regular ones, which are
highly infested and difficult to clean. Nonetheless, it still
cannot be guaranteed 100% that insects have not penetrated
the hothouses and attached themselves to the leaves. (In
order to be certain that these vegetables are totally bug
free, the leaves must be thoroughly rinsed.)
Alongside the activities of its professional staff, the
laboratory releases its findings to manufacturers and to the
public at large, in order to increase their awareness of the
problem.
The laboratory, which currently inspects basic food products
as well as fruits and vegetables, plans to broaden its
activities in the area of food compounds and chemical
ingredients. These have become an integral part of food
manufacturing, and their use obligates special caution as
well as laboratory testing to prevent possible infestation in
the final product.
