WhiteBlaze > Gear Reviews > Food > Does Anyone Know of any Hiking/Camping Food that is considered Kosher?
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Hey Fellow Hikers, I have a question. I've had people come into my store an ask if I had any "Kosher" Camping food. I know that Mountain House isn't. Does anyone know of any Camping/Hiking Food that is considered Kosher??? Thanks in advance!!!
http://hawkvittles.com/ Check with Hawk Vittles. He may have something already kosher, or may be able to customize a few recipes for you.
I don't know how that works, but can ya take it to a Rabbi and have him say a few words?
If they are strictly kosher, this would require special preparations under the supervision of a maschiach. I'm not aware of any company that does this, but I haven't really looked around.
If they are not too strict, any vegetarian food will probably be acceptable (eggs would probably be OK too). Check with them to be sure. There are many vegetarian options available.
Kosher. Gluten Free. Vegan. Dairy Free. Soy Free. Non-GMO. Does that hit all the bases?
A: YES! All of our products (with the exception of our Vegan Soup Blends) are now certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union and carry the OU symbol. They also have the PAREVE designation. Even if you don't require Kosher, the process of inspections required under the Orthodox Union adds another level of quality assurance to our products. Please email service@harmonyhousefoods.com if you would like a copy of the Letter of Certification.
Other than HH I do not know of any commercially available backpacking food and what may need to be stocked is the usual grocery store fare known to be kosher or acceptable that hikers would usually seek out at the store.
Trust me. Larabars are backpacking food. Don't leave home without them.
A: YES! All of our products (with the exception of our Vegan Soup Blends) are now certified Kosher by the Orthodox Union and carry the OU symbol. They also have the PAREVE designation. Even if you don't require Kosher, the process of inspections required under the Orthodox Union adds another level of quality assurance to our products. Please email service@harmonyhousefoods.com if you would like a copy of the Letter of Certification. .
That's odd, vegan items are kosher, there is no meat, no pork, no dairy.....unless they didn't have the Rabbi drive by and bless the place where they are made ( which is how they do "kosher" slaughterhouses, an oxymoron in it's own rite ).
Hope you find some yummy stuff to eat!
Maybe there is an untapped Jewish hiking market that needs to be exploited. I call dibs on the backpacking matza.
Vegetarian and, even more stringent still, Vegan labeled foods are NOT synonymous with Kosher(according to kashrut - Jewish Dietary laws) and Kosher is definitely NOT synonymous with Vegan or vegetarian, although there are often crossover food products that COULD meet all three requirements.
There are many trail bars and trail snacks labeled Kosher or have the "U" or "K" symbol. Peruse grocery store shelves like at a heath food store, Earthfare, WholeFoods, etc especially the trail bar area and you'll see what I mean. I have seen a few prepackaged freeze dried backpacking options labeled Kosher. My suggestion for you as a conscientious store owner is to visit a Grocery store specializing in Kosher(Jewish) food and see what might appeal to both Kosher and non-Kosher diets this way you appealing to a wider market. Fantastic Foods, like their falafel, tabouli, veg chili, etc are labeled Kosher, I think too. I've taken them to the trail.
Boom! I think we have our marketing rep. Now all we need is a name and a kickstart account.
That would be a great trail name.
BTW, I made a mistake before possibly misleading readers to assume it is only Jews who eat Kosher. Not only do Vegans and vegetarians sometimes start off seeking food that is labeled Kosher, and then further review it to see if it meets their specific dietary requirements, but if you visit middle eastern food stores or those that carry products that are vended to ethnicities/nationalities and religions such as Islam(Moslems) such as Turkish, Egyptian, Morrocan, Lebanese, etc you'll also find Kosher branded foods. From what I gather and have heard something like more than 50% of the food available in the U.S. is Kosher but without carrying the Kosher seal/label. Some say as high as 75%. Know why you don't see the certified Kosher seal/label that often though? You have to pay a fee to a Rabbi to have that seal/label.
He said about a third of all supermarket items were certified kosher. In 2003, kosher foods comprised about $170 billion of the $500 billion in U.S. food sales.
Did not know about the other ethnic and religeous groups requirements. hmm, interesting.
Muslims eat food that is halal (Arabic for "allowed") which is not the same as Kosher. I am not aware of any regulation that Kosher food be blessed by a Rabbi. Rather the production facility must be inspected and approved by Rabbis to assure the content and processing of food follows the rules, but the food need not be blessed. However a religious blessing IS part of the traditional preparation of halal meat. On the other hand, mixing meat and dairy is halal but not kosher. Wine is kosher but not halal. Finally, Islam and Judaism are complex and diverse religions, and there will be variable interpretations of the dietary laws amongst followers of both religions. For some Muslims, shrimp is halal but for others it is not. For some Jews, wine produced by Jews is kosher but other wine is not. But shrimp is never kosher and wine is never halal. There are however similarities. Pork is forbidden in both traditions, and I have Muslim friends who will eat kosher foods (Hebrew National hot dogs for example) when they are in an area where halal meat is not readily available.
I very seldom use packaged backpacking food. I prepare freezer bag meals at home. But it's about seasoning them to my taste, not about dietary restrictions.
There have been some good suggestions, but the OP was asking about kosher items to sell in his store.
dumb question, but is it possible to sell dried "regular" food that happens to be used for backpacking? Or does it have to be a backpacking specific brand?
That is my thought as well... that other than products such as Harmony House, the solution would seem to be to stock those grocery items that are kosher, that also appeal to all backpackers.
That is what I was trying to get at in post #17. One survey of any large grocery store's food labels in the U.S. focusing in on foods that commonly appeal to backpackers and, although we might not all be accustomed to looking for and finding Kosher labeled food, you'll find quite a few products that appeal to veru wide range of backpackers including those seeking Kosher labeled products. A good place to start looking for Kosher branded products is in the International Food, Organic, vegetarian/Vegan, Gluten free, Diabetic, etc aisles. You'll notice plenty of those types of products multi labeled because they appeal to a larger crossover/multi-use/diet market.
..... the solution would seem to be to stock those grocery items that are kosher, that also appeal to all backpackers.
This what I said back in post #11.
For strict observers, the Kosher certification is necessary. The rules are not just limited to ingredients (no pork, shellfish, etc) but the preparation is also important. For example, the same knife cannot be used to cut both kosher and non-kosher foods. Of course not everybody is so strict, but as you pointed out for non-Jewish people the kosher certification (especially for meat) is a sign of quality. Kosher meat guarantees that the animal was killed in a humane and sanitary way. So chicken is a permissible animal to eat, but if the chicken is killed improperly it is not kosher.
And some foods are always kosher - for example, fresh fruits and vegetables require no certification, as long as they are unprocessed and free of bugs.
Obvious that several in this thread have or had no idea whatsoever of what kosher food is all about, so why guess or offer suggestions on topics we are not familiar with ?
A neighbor of mine once gave me one of these boxes. They were uniformly awful. Coincidentally, this neighbor is Jewish and a retired "food packaging" engineer for one of the armed services, not sure which. His wife used to bring delicious kugel to our potluck dinners. Now that stuff was tasty.
His wife used to bring delicious kugel to our potluck dinners. Now that stuff was tasty.
My closest friends in town are Jewish and invite me over for the holidays. They made kugel with buttrscotch recently for Yom Kippur.
^^ Perhaps Mags is thinking of a break-fast party, which happens just as Yom Kippur is ending? (It's a tradition we observe... anything with lots of good food is fine by me...) As in, literally, breaking the "fast."
Yes. I should have said "Breaking the fast" It was after 5pm.Quite a few of my friends present at the "Breaking of the fast" did indeed fast.
Ah. Now I am jealous. I want to come to your break the fast. All I can eat after fasting that long is a few crackers and a cup of OJ. My stomach complains for 25 hours, then pulls a "just kidding" on me every. Single. Year.
Not amused, tummy. Not amused.