What is the difference between organic foods and Kosher foods?

Today’s Re-Powering Information - During the grocery shopping tour on Thursday night. Reyna asked 2 good questions which I did not know the answers to, so I looked them up. One was about Kosher foods and the other was about cheese.

The question was . . . What is the difference between organic foods and Kosher foods. I know about organic, but I am not as familiar with Kosher foods. Here is what I found:
Kosher food is food that meets Jewish dietary laws, or kashrut, which comes from the Hebrew word for "fit" or "proper." Any food can be called kosher food if it adheres to Jewish law, or halacha. Conversely, foods typically labeled as "Jewish" aren't necessarily kosher. Jewish foods are generally those dishes that are traditionally Jewish. Kreplach, cholent, kugel, latke, and kishka are all traditionally Jewish foods, but if they are not prepared in accordance with kashrut, they will not be kosher food.
The word "kosher" is not only used for food, however. Kosher basically means that something follows all the Jewish legal guidelines. The word has even gained a place in American slang to mean appropriate, legitimate, or proper. Instead of saying "that's not right," one might say "that's not kosher."
Kosher food laws are rather extensive. Some are derived directly from the bible and others through rabbinic interpretations over the years. What are some of the laws governing kosher food?
· According to the Torah (also known as the five books of Moses, the Old Testament, or the Pentateuch) cloven hoofed, cud-chewing mammals are kosher. Deer, sheep and goats, for example are all kosher, while pig and rabbit, for example, are not.
· Only certain birds are considered kosher in the United States. This includes chicken, duck, goose, and turkey.
· Lobster lovers might be dismayed to find that for seafood or fish to be kosher, it must have fins and easily removable scales. Shellfish generally, and lobsters, shrimp, and clams, specifically are not kosher. Fish, on the other hand, such as tuna, carp, and herring, are kosher, but only if they are prepared by a kosher fish monger with kosher cutting implements and machines. There's more. In most cases, scales must be present on the fish in order to be purchased by the consumer.
· Fish and meat cannot be served together.
· Milk and meat cannot be served together. Rabbinic law includes poultry in this prohibition, however fish is excluded. This gives rise to the popular, and kosher, bagel, lox, and cream cheese combination.
· Processed food must be prepared in the presence of a rabbi.
· Poultry and meat must be slaughtered under strict guidelines called "shechita." This means the animals are slaughtered without pain. Only those who are trained and qualified are allowed to slaughter kosher animals. Once the animal is no longer alive, another team of experts will examine the animal to be sure the animal is without illness, abnormalities or anything else that can be considered unsanitary. The lungs in particular must be pure. In addition, all blood, nerves, and most fat must be removed.
· Kosher kitchens must maintain separate sets of utensils, pots, pans, dishes, and anything else that comes in contact with food. In addition, dishes and utensils in a kosher kitchen can't be washed together. If a kitchen has two sinks, it is an ideal setup for a kosher family. If not, separate wash buckets are often used. Dishes and utensils must be dried using separate racks or dishtowels as well.
There are many other rules to be followed for anything to be considered kosher food. To make identification easier on the consumer, kosher food is often identified as such by its kashrut certification on the food's package. Kashrut certification is generally indicated by an identifiable symbol that includes the letter K, or by the word pareve, which means the food is neither dairy nor meat, but rather neutral.
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Organic foods are not the same as kosher foods. Organic foods are raised without animal by-products, hormones, antibiotics, etc. Organic produce has no chemical pesticides or growth additives and are not genetically modified.
From reading the blogs, articles, etc.. I have gleamed that kosher foods cannot be given antibiotics, hormones and cannot be fed animal by-products. The animal must be slaughtered by kosher law which seems more humane. I do like the fact that the animals (in an organic and humane sense) must be disease free.
Kosher meats are produced in smaller batches than conventional non-kosher meats due to the labor intensiveness in making the meat kosher- removal of blood, veins, etc. If you are really looking at what type of meats to buy- look for ones that are certified kosher and organic- you can find these specialty markets on the web.
All food has some sort of food borne pest and disease that must be watched for. If you really want to know what you are eating- go to a local farm and see how the animals are cared for. It's better for the earth and national economy- meat is often butchered locally.
70% or greater of the products on grocery store shelves show some marking of kosher certification one does not keep kosher to appear more enlightened or better than those who don't. Pepsi and Coke have markings as do most cookies, crackers and processed foods.
Eat local or go cut back on meat if you are really worried about what your food is going through.
I will follow up with the cheese question on Monday. I am also researching Ph diets this weekend. Acid and Alkaline diets are in vogue now so I’ll check them out for you.
More to come. . .
Enjoy your weekend and plan to be there on Monday. I would love to see EVERYONE!!

PS – I am on my way to see the movie The Cross at Grapevine Mills. It just came out yesterday. It’s a true story / documentary. http://thecrossmovie.info/about.htm.