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Release Date: July 17, 2007
NJLINCS Health Alert Network and Senior Services Subject: Recall of Aaron's Best Beef and Chicken Products Date: 7/9/2007; 09:19:20 Message #: 100540-7-9-2007-PHIN Contact Inf Alan L. Talarsky, NJDHSS/CEHS/ Food and Drug Safety Program Attachments: Aaron's_Best_Recall.doc Please review the following messages from Alan Talarsky, Environmental Scientist 1, Food and Drug Safety Program, DHSS regarding the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service's Class 1 Recall of various beef and chicken products produced by Agriprocessors, Inc., of Postville, Iowa. being recalled because they may contain egg albumen, a known allergen, which is not declared on the label. CHICKEN BREAST PATTIES, GLATT KOSHER, FULLY COOKED." Each box contains the code "8692-1" and establishment number "P 4653A" inside the USDA mark of inspection. WITH BEEF, GLATT KOSHER, FULLY COOKED." Each box contains the code "8698-1" and the establishment number "EST. 4653A" inside the USDA mark of inspection. KOSHER Kishka, Fully Cooked." Each box contains the code "3852-1" and the establishment number "EST. 4653A" inside the USDA mark of inspection. KOSHER Kishka, Fully Cooked." Each package contains the establishment number "EST. 4653A" inside the USDA mark of inspection and a date code of "014-07," "015-07," "040-07" or "042-07." dates between Jan. 14 and July 3 and were distributed to food service establishments and institutions nationwide. In addition, the one-pound packages of Kishka were also distributed through retail stores. As a business, Agriprocessors, Inc. strives to be second to none in producing the finest quality beef and poultry products at a reasonable price. We are devoted to our customers and are committed to following and upholding the federal, state, and local laws and regulations governing our business. As a producer of kosher meat products, we approach our business in the context of a deep religious tradition. The nine rabbinic authorities that use Agriprocessors to serve the needs to their congregations define the requirements for kosher meat production at our plant, and train and supervise the rabbis who conduct the religious rituals. The values expressed in the kosher rituals and requirements are a part of the values shared by our employees, regardless of their religious beliefs. They include a commitment to: These values and commitments are reflected in everything that Agriprocessors does. It appears from the reports they failed on all of their values and commitments. They give their history on the web site as: In the mid-1980s, the future of local kosher butcher shops looked bleak. The growing cost of bringing livestock to the butcher for preparation was making it more difficult for independent kosher and non-kosher butchers alike to stay in business. introducing the self serve beef and poultry case that the future of quality meat production lay in bringing the butcher to the livestock instead of bringing the livestock all the way to the city butcher. He also saw a business opportunity that served the needs not only of his religious community, but for consumers everywhere. Knowing that Iowa's family farms are known to raise the best cattle in the world, Aaron purchased the former HyGrade meat processing plant in Postville, Iowa in 1987. The plant had been closed for seven years and the city's leaders were eager to see it brought back to life for the benefit of the local economy and its farmers. processors added kosher meat production as an afterthought. But Aaron designed the beef harvesting process in a way that would fully accommodate every rabbinical standard glatt kosher and regular kosher. Even the rabbinate of the state of Israel is accommodated in the process. He trusted that kosher customers would be reassured by his family's commitment to kosher standards and that non-kosher customers would appreciate the better meat produced under kosher requirements. Aaron also knew it would not be enough for his family to run the business from a distance. His sons, Sholom and Heshy Rubashkin, and his daughter and son in law Yossie Gourarie moved to Postville with their families and serve as Agriprocessors' senior officers at the Postville plant. Many other families followed them and joined with local employees and their families to transform Agriprocessors' Postville plant into a leading producer of kosher and non-kosher beef, veal, lamb, turkey and chicken products sold throughout the world. From that beginning, Agriprocessors has grown to be the producer of choice, of many fine kosher beef products as well as chicken, turkey, veal and lamb. These products can be found in many supermarkets nationally such as Albertson's Kroger, Shop Rite, Wal-Mart, Trader Joe's, Ralph's, Pathmark, H.E. Butt, etc. While Jewish law forbids us from cutting the corners of our fields and leaving those crops for the poor, it appears that the success of Agriprocessors has come from the greed of cutting many corners, legal, Talmudic, Torah, Judaic, animal humane laws, and human fair labor practices. If it has not become obvious to the read yet, the Yetzer Ha Ra, one's evil inclination, can be alive and well, even in the most pious and orthodox of Jew, and the Talmud actually tells us that the closer we come to God, the more the Yetzer Ha Ra will try its best to deter us. The worship of money and profit has been the evil inclination's play ground long before their were even rules about kosher. It is obvious that while rabbis may be on site checking kosher slaughtering, we need as Jews, of all sects, to demand, that a Heksher Tzedek, a seal of ethics , be given by an independent body, not tainted with money from the meat processor. Agriprocessor is the USA's largest kosher meat supplier, from beef to poultry, yet look at its history, that no Rabbinic organization, did the successful mitzvoth of reproving them when they have a history of doing wrong. Worse, when other organizations, like PETA approached Jewish organizations for help for the animals and the human workers, they were dismissed. Judaism ''stood idly by'', breaking another commandment. Wikipedia states that Agriprocessors is the corporate identity of a slaughterhouse and meat-packaging factory that is in an incorporated area of Postville, Iowa best known as a facility for the glatt kosher processing of cattle, as well as chicken, turkey, duck, lamb and veal It is the largest kosher meatpacking plant in the United States. It was founded by Aaron Rubashkin. Rubashkin is regarded as an innovator in the kosher meat industry, bringing modern industrial methods to what has historically been a small, almost boutique craft. Two-thirds of its output, however, is non-kosher and is marketed under the brand Iowa Best Beef.. Its kosher products are marketed under the brand names Aaron's Best and Rubashkins. The current CEO is the founder's son Sholom Rubashkin and another son, Heshy Rubashkin is also active in the organization. Agriprocessors, the Rubashkin family, and their supporters are surrounded by controversy and bad publicity. Rubashkin purchased the meat packing facility in 1987. Agriprocessors was subjected to serious charges of using inhumane methods of slaughter, of being unsanitary, of maintaining an unsafe work environment and of mistreating its employees. All of this was propelled by a secret video released by PETA, leading to further attention. PETA ineffectively picketed the Allamakee County District Attorney to start an investigation , something that received more coverage elsewhere than locally. Temple Grandin , recognized as one of the world's foremost authorities on the design of cattle containment and slaughter, is said to have been appalled at what she saw on the tape. Jewish commentators stated, based on what was seen on the tape, that the practices violated Jewish law, and thus the products' kosherness were suspect. After the initial controversy, however, audits by competent private firms as well as governmental agencies passed favorably on Agriprocessors' practices. In particular, Temple Grandin toured the facility on June 27, 2006, and by Agriprocessors own statement, she is stated to have approved of everything she saw. In 2000 the book Postville: A Clash of Cultures in Heartland America was written about the sometimes uneasy relationship between the plant and the local community. In a news release dated January 23, 2007, 2,700 pounds of frankfurters offered for sale in the Northeast were voluntarily recalled as having been under-processed. In September 2005, the company's employees voted to join the United Food and Commercial Workers union. When the company refused to bargain, the union filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board. The company claimed that most of those who voted are undocumented aliens, arguing that undocumented aliens are prohibited from unionizing because they do not qualify as "employees" protected by the National Labor Relations Act. "Because the company's argument ignores both the Act's plain language and binding Supreme Court precedent," the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, in a case argued October 19, 2007 and Decided January 4, 2008, denied the company's petition for review. On August 31, 2006. Agriprocessors signed a consent decree where they essentially admitted discharging untreated sewage into the Postville system, in violation of Federal and Iowa State law and paid a $600,000 fine for violating waste-water regulations. Starting in 2004, city authorities started an investigation against Agriprocessors due to complaints from local residents that they routinely deposited untreated effluence into local rivers in breach of regulations. On August 31, 2006. Agriprocessors signed a consent decree and paid a $600,000 fine for violating waste-water regulations. On 12 May 2008 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") staged a raid on the plant which was described as the largest in the history of the United States. Federal authorities arrested hundreds of illegal immigrant workers during the raid. ICE spokesman Tim Counts said that "The raid was aimed at seeking evidence of identity theft, stolen Social Security numbers and for people who are in the country illegally" . According to the U.S. attorney's office for the Northern District of Iowa, those arrested "include 290 Guatemalans, 93 Mexicans, 2 Israelis and 4 Ukrainians" . Federal immigration authorities also asserted that "a methamphetamine laboratory was operating at the slaughterhouse" and that "employees carried weapons to work.''
Public Health Info
Distributed by the New Jersey Department of Health
Phone: 609-588-3123; Email: at2@njlincs.net
Approximately 35,860 pounds of frozen beef and chicken products are
The following products are subject to recall: [View Labels]
20-pound bulk boxes of "AARON'S BEST NUGGET SHAPED
20-pound bulk boxes of "AARON'S BEST MEATBALLS, MADE
12-pound boxes of "RUBASHKIN'S, AARON'S BEST, GLATT
1-pound packages of "RUBASHKIN'S, AARON'S BEST, GLATT
The frozen chicken and beef products were produced on various
Agriprocessor's web site states the following:
Aaron Rubashkin already has innovated the kosher beef and poultry industry by
Aaron wanted Agriprocessors to be different. Most other large meat
| Now at first glace I wondered why a meth lab was needed, but when I saw how many hours a day the workers were forced to work, it made sense. The JTA Jewish News agency stated: Federal authorities charged that a methamphetamine laboratory was operating at the nation's largest kosher slaughterhouse and that employees carried weapons to work. following the massive raid Monday at Agriprocessors in Postville, Iowa. details of their six-month probe of Agriprocessors. The investigation involved 12 federal agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the departments of labor and agriculture. told investigators that some 80 percent of the workforce was illegal. They included rabbis responsible for kosher supervision, who the source believed entered the United States from Canada without proper immigration documents. The source did not provide evidence for his suspicion about the rabbis. manager with Social Security cards from three employees that had the same number. The manager laughed when the matter was raised, the source said. for which federal authorities had rented an expansive fairground nearby to serve as a processing center for detainees. The search warrant application said that 697 plant employees were believed to have violated federal laws. Agriprocessors officials did not return calls from JTA seeking comment. SO with illegal Rabbis watching the literal Hen House of course the foxes will be let in . An Iowa businessman with ties to the kosher slaughterhouse targeted in last week's immigration raid was summoned to appear in June before a grand jury, the Des Moines Register reported May 23, 2008. schools and the owner of several rental properties in town, said he received the subpoena Thursday, the Des Moines Register reported. or as a potential target of a government investigation. A spokesperson for the Northern Iowa U.S. Attorney's Office would neither confirm or deny that a grand jury has been convened in connection with the Postville raid. against the Rubashkins themselves," said Marc Stern, general counsel to the American Jewish Congress. laid the legal groundwork for last week's raid at Agriprocessors, which netted 389 illegal immigrants. R.W. is alleged to have carried an envelope of cash with which he paid undocumented Agriprocessor's employees. the R.W. named in the affidavit. Rubashkin family of Brooklyn. He participated in a November 2006 meeting in Minneapolis with Sholom Rubashkin, who runs Agriprocessors, and two Jewish officials trying to improve conditions at the plant. A page on the Agriprocessors' Web site, headlined "Finding a Home: Postville Housing," identifies Ron Wahls as the builder of apartment buildings to house workers at the plant. as well as for a spokesperson for Agriprocessors, were not returned. But while Jewish agencies who continued to put their Kosher stamp of approval on the meat from Agriprocessors, so did the Federal government. USDA Report Finds That AgriProcessorsViolated Humane, Kosher LawsPETA is calling on government inspectors to be fired after a federal probe revealed that they accepted gifts and kept quiet about illegal mutilations of live animals. After reviewing video footage taken by an undercover PETA investigator, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has concluded that Postville, Iowa-based AgriProcessors—the largest glatt kosher slaughterhouse in the world—repeatedly violated provisions of the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act (HMSA) while federal inspectors looked on and did nothing. Workers were caught on videotape shocking cows in the face with electric prods, ripping out their windpipes while they were still conscious, and dumping the animals onto the floor as they struggled in terror while blood gushed from their throats. The report belies AgriProcessors' earlier claims that the cruel methods it used to kill cows complied with federal and kosher regulations. The USDA report also states that some inspectors accepted gifts of meat from AgriProcessors, failed to report violations, and committed "other acts of misconduct." Despite the USDA's findings, the assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Iowa has declined to press charges against AgriProcessors. PETA is requesting reports on what actions are being taken against the delinquent inspectors and calling for their immediate dismissal. The HMSA stipulates that animals cannot be dismembered until they are rendered insensible to pain, including during ritual slaughter. This was not the case at AgriProcessors. The investigations by both PETA and the USDA found that more than 10 percent of the animals whose tracheas were ripped out tried to stand up and writhed on the floor in pools of their own blood. In more than four hours of videotape shot by PETA's investigator, more than 20 percent of the 278 animals shown being killed were clearly conscious after having their throats cut and their tracheas ripped out by workers. The Talmud is clear as is the Torah that bribing is against God's law and is certainly against our USA laws. But Chabad did not reprove the Jewish owners of Agriprocessors. The Talmud is clear that a synagogue cannot accept money from one who earns it unethically, and further one cannot be a rabbi if one earns money unethically, or example one who is a dice gambler or a pigeon racer. Yet Chabad continued to receive gifts from the owners of Agriprocessors and the illegal- alien bribe- giving,- bribe- accepting- Rabbis still worked there, stamping food as kosher. The Conservative rabbinic movement made a statement and wrote to their Orthodox rabbinic brothers, but no action was taken: From the Rabbinical Assembly of the Conservative Movement: Animals (PETA) produced of incidents during shehitah (Jewish ritual animal slaughter) at the AgriProcessors' plant in Postville, Iowa should be regarded as a welcome, though unfortunate service to the Jewish community. It is a service precisely because the scenes recorded are not what shehitah should be, nor does it correspond to the Jewish way of treating animals, even at the time of their slaughter. The uproar within the Jewish community over the videos is proof that those who observe kashrut are serious about the humane treatment of animals. When a company purporting to be kosher violates the prohibition against tza'ar ba'alei hayyim, causing pain to one of God's living creatures, that company must answer to the Jewish community, and ultimately, to God. and our Committee on Jewish Law and Standards (CJLS) has criticized a number of them. In 2000, the CJLS unanimously approved a teshuvah (response to a question of Jewish law), written by Rabbis Elliot N. Dorff and Joel Roth, in which the shackling and hoisting of animals in preparation for shehitah was ruled a violation of tza'ar ba'alei hayyim. The teshuvah encourages all kosher processing plants to abandon that procedure and upgrade to more humane pens to secure an animal for slaughter. Such humane pens do not include the Facomia Pen or the Weinberg Pen, both of which are inconsistent with our understanding of what it means to humanely treat an animal. The AgriProcessor plant of Postville, Iowa uses the Facomia pen and the PETA video captures exactly what the teshuvah of 2000 indicates, that this pen violates the prohibition against tza'ar ba'alei hayyim. for its quick response to the video and its allegations. According to Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, Executive Vice President of the OU, a review of shehitah procedures at AgriProcessors is now taking place and an OU supervisor has been placed on duty to assure that procedures assuring kashrut and the humane treatment of animals are followed. We hope that with this review, the OU will demand that the facilities it supervises install pens that meet modern scientific animal welfare/humane handling requirements such as the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) pen which we regard as a humane animal securing device, but not excluding other equally humane technological options. of kosher meat are engaged in a sacred task. We are certain that they agree with us that the humane treatment of the animal is key to the Jewish approach toward life. In keeping with our CJLS teshuvah of 2000, we urge all those involved in shehitah to invest in and install those technologies that assure that the animal's life is terminated speedily and with the humanity that Jewish law demands. But nothing was truly done and the situation got worse until the needed raid in May 2008. With politics and money at stake, the Conservative movement backed down of a boycott of Agriprocessors. Calls this week by activist rabbis for a limited boycott have been muted out of concern that a boycott could be actionable and might discourage Jews from keeping kosher because kosher meat would be harder to access. But isn't it obvious that meat coming from these conditions is not kosher? And doesn't the Talmud teach that while God has allowed us to eat meat, we must do so with the utmost care of the animal and not cause it pain. The Talmud also teaches that the best way to eat is vegetarian, as Adam was in the Garden of Eden.(Gen. 1:29) And wouldn't laws against cruelty extend to the workers employed to slaughter the animals? A Statement by the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism New York, NY (May 22, 2008) - In light of continuing disturbing allegations of unacceptable worker conditions at the Agriprocessors Plant in Postville, Iowa, the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and the Rabbinical Assembly is united in calling for a thorough evaluation by kosher consumers of the appropriateness of purchasing and consuming meat products produced by the Rubashkin's label. Rubashkin's produces kosher meat primarily under the Aaron and David label at the Agriprocessors facility. It is a major producer of kosher meat and poultry in the United States. The allegations about the terrible treatment of workers employed by Rubashkin's has shocked and appalled members of the Conservative Movement as well as all people of conscience. As Kashrut seeks to diminish animal suffering and offer a humane method of slaughter, it is bitterly ironic that a plant producing kosher meat be guilty of inflicting human suffering. The Rabbinical Assembly and United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism will immediately release an advisory to its members and constituents to evaluate the appropriateness of consuming Rubashkin products until the current situation is addressed. This advisory extends not only to products purchased on the retail level but to meat and poultry consumed in restaurants and at private functions, such as weddings and bar mitzvahs. As the month of Sivan approaches, Jews throughout the world are mindful of the Torah's message of the power of Kedushah, holiness as it applies to all aspects of our lives including the ethics of worker treatment and food production. It is hoped that Conservative synagogues, schools and summer camps engage in a study of this important topic in honor of the festival of Shavuot – which begins on the sixth day of Sivan — which commemorates the giving of the Torah. The reports of unacceptable worker conditions at the Agriprocessors plant demonstrate the pressing need for the sort of ethical oversight. When PETA conducted a second investigation into AgriProcessors in May 2007 at the company's Gordon, Nebraska, slaughterhouse, the investigator discovered that animal abuse still takes place inside their facilities. Have we as Jews forgotten: You shall not abuse a needy and destitute laborer (Deuteronomy 24:14)? Have we as Jews forgotten: When a stranger resides with you in your land you shall not wrong him. The stranger who resides with you in your land, shall be to you as one of your citizens; you shall love him as yourself for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord am your God. (Lev :19: 33-34)? Have we as Jews forgotten : Tza'ar ba'alei chayim, "causing pain to living creatures," is a sin? Have we as Jews forgotten:'' And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against those that oppress the hireling in his wages'' (Malachi 3:5)? Have we as Jews forgotten: "It is our pride and our glory that we are kind to those who work for us." (Sefer HaChinukh 482)? Have we as Jews forgotten: "A poor worker's life depends on his wages. If we withhold, or under pay, it is though we have taken a life" (Talmud Bavli Tractate Bava Metzia 112a)? Have we as Jews forgotten: "It is forbidden to purchase goods from a thief". (Shulchan Arukh, Choshen Mishpat 356:1)? Have we as Jews forgotten: "A righteous man considers the soul of his animal." (Proverbs 12:10).? I ,as a Rabbi, am publicly calling for Rabbis of all Jewish movements and for Jews of all movements ,whether we follow kosher food laws or not, to demand, that a HEKSHER TZEDKEK, a seal of ethical business practices both towards the workers and the animals, is followed at any plant considering itself to be kosher. The below shows that we cannot trust the system in place of the slaughterhouse owner, hiring his own rabbis, as what ethical rabbi would allow what has been alleged at Agriprocessors to occur, or want to do business with any of the below principles of Agriprocessors? Until we institute a HEKSHER TZEDEK the idea of ''kosher meat'' will be an oxymoron. Rubashkin ScandalsAgriprocessors, the Rubashkin family's Postville, Iowa slaughterhouse, was found to be in violation of Humane Slaughter guidelines after PETA released an undercover video showing cows' throats ripped out with a meat hook and cows writhing on the floor, trying to get up and run away after shechita. Veterinarians, large animal biologists and animal welfare experts came down on PETA's side, while Orthodox rabbis supported Rubashkin. Nevertheless, the OU promised to stop meat hook use and throat-ripping. Two years later, Rubashkin's Gordon, Nebraska plant was found to be using a meat hook to probe the throats of fully conscious animals. The OU denied the instrument used was a meat hook. The OU was not being honest . Documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act that prove the USDA now allows this type of meat hook use, even on fully conscious animals. The documents indicate the USDA expects this procedure to be done by rabbis as part of the ritual slaughter, not by non-Jewish workers. Yet the USDA in practice allowed non-Jewish employees to do the procedure. In an award-winning report by the Forward, the Postville plant was also accused of abusing its employees. The plant has had its share of EPA troubles, as well. Aaron Rubashkin, the family's patriarch and president of Agriprocessors, was sanctioned by the National Labor Relations Board along with his son Rabbi Moshe Rubashkin. The Rubashkins collected union dues from their Brooklyn employees but did not turn the money over to the union. Instead, the Rubashkins kept the money for themselves. Another PETA undercover video shows an Agriprocessor's representative refusing to pay for work-related medical care for a plant worker. Rubashkin also had several food safety issues , including mishandling of meat potentially tainted with mad cow disease. Agriprocessors refused to recognize its employees' vote to unionize. The National Labor Relations Board found against Agriprocessors. The Rubashkin family appealed that decision. On January 4, 2008 the United States Circuit Court of Appeals found against Agriprocessors and for the employees' unionization. Here is a PDF of that decision. Here are interviews done regarding the various Rubashkin scandals:
There are dozens of posts on the various Rubashkin scandals. Here are the index pages for those posts. Please realize that some of these pages are very heavy and will take some time to load. Also note that the most recent post is at the top of the page, the oldest at the bottom. The same post will often be found in more than one index page, as well. Rubashkin Kosher Meat Scandal. you'll find other, older posts in other sections.) find other, older posts in other sections). Moshe Rubashkin Rabbi Moshe Rubashkin, a son of Aaron Rubashkin, has his own run-ins with the law. A Convicted felon, Moshe Rubashkin was elected president of the Crown Heights Community Council shortly after his parole. He was indicted in September 2007 along with one of his sons for a scheme to avoid paying taxes and upkeep on a large industrial property he abandoned in Allentown, PA. That scheme is first reported here .. That property burned in several suspicious fires and in at least one arson. Moshe Rubashkin left hazardous, highly flammable chemicals at the site, located in a residential area. Moshe Rubashkin and Shalom pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. Most posts about them are scattered in other indexes. The best way to find them all is to look here.
Union Wins In Court Agriprocessors hired illegal aliens along with documented workers. When those workers voted to unionize in September 2005, Rubashkin claimed the illegals were not "employees" protected by the National Labor Relations Act (because they are illegals) and therefore rejected the vote to unionize, claiming a majority of union voters were illegals and therefore not "employees." Rubashkin refused to bargain with the union or recognize the vote.
The National Labor Relations Board found against Rubashkin. Rubashkin appealed. On Friday, January 4, 2008, the US Court of Appeals rejected the appeal.. Health and Safety Violation At Local Pride, LLC, Rubashkin's Nebraska Plant In February 2008, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union issued a report on massive health and safety violations at Rubashkin's Nebraska plant, Local Pride, LLC, based on USDA documents received by the union through the freedom of information act. The union also released a letter from four US congressmen written to the acting USDA Secretary about Agriprocessors many health, safety and humane slaughter violations. Rabbi Sholom M. Rubashkin responded to the union's report by claiming the union was terrorizing Agriprocessors because for the past three years its employees had refused to unionize. Rubashkin failed to mention the NLRB decision and court case that found that Agriprocessors had illegally restrained employees from unionizing by discarding election results that included votes from undocumented workers. Early in January of 2008, Agriprocessors lost its legal fight against the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.
Salmonella Using the Freedom of Information Act, Food and Water Watch was able to compile a list of the worst slaughterhouses in America for salmonella, the bacteria that causes most food born infection in the US. Agriprocessors is in the lowest 15% of slaughter houses, failing three separate salmonella inspections and "passing" a fourth with the lowest possible passing grade.
Agriprocessors Loses KAJ Kosher Supervision Meanwhile, a leaked letter from KAJ the Washington Heights-based kosher certifiers that were for many tears the lead supervisory team at Agriprocessors, show that KAJ did stop certifying Agriprocessors for kashrut-related reasons. Agriprocessors and Aaron Rubashkin Linked To Allou Healthcare Fraud Also surfacing was a judgment against Aaron Rubashkin and his assorted companies in the Allou Healthcare bankruptcy case. Allou executives, Satmar hasidim from Brooklyn, pleaded guilty to fraud in this case. Allou's court-appointed receiver sued Rubashkin and his companies, receiving a $ 1.4 million judgement on October 1, 2007. Even though Allou was not in the meat business and did not distribute food, especially refrigerated perishable food, Aaron Rubashkin's meat companies claimed to have sold Allou almost $2 million dollars worth of meat. No trace of the meat or its distribution could be found. It is believed the invoices sent by Rubashkin to Allou were false, and that the money Allou paid was kicked back to the Jacobowitz family, the executives of Allou, with Rubashkin keeping a percentage for himself. This alleged money laundering has not – yet – been criminally prosecuted. Aaron Rubashkin Owns 10% to 20% of Postville, Iowa Real Estate When researching the Rubashkin - Allou connection, it was learned Nevel, Aaron Rubashkin real estate company, is said to own 10% to 20% of Postville, Iowa's housing stock, making him the city's largest employer and largest landowner. He would also appear to be its biggest landlord, as well. Immigration Raid 5-12-08 Fifteen federal and state agencies raided Agriprocessors in Postville, Iowa on Monday, May 12, 2008. More than 300 illegal workers were arrested. At the same time, a US Department of Labor–Iowa Department of Labor investigation came to light. Rubashkin and Agriprocessors is under investigation for numerous alleged violations of labor law, including alleged violations of child labor laws. Agriprocessors is alleged to have paid illegal workers $5 per hour to start and $6 per hour after three months, both figures well below legal minimum wage. Thank you. Shalom v'bracoth: Rabbi Arthur Segal |
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