Hechscher

Hechsher
The hechsher of the Orthodox Union is the most widely known kosher certification in the world.
Product category	Food products
Type of standard	Religious

A hechsher (/hɛxʃər/; Hebrew: הֶכְשֵׁר‎‎ [ˈheχʃeʁ] "prior approval"; plural: hechsherim) is a rabbinical product certification, qualifying items (usually foods) that conform to the requirements of halakha.

A hechsher may be a printed and signed certificate displayed at a commercial venue or on a media advertisement advising the consumer that the subjected product is Kosher. Such certificates usually display the name of the rabbinical court issuing the hechsher, the name of the business or product, date of issue, expiry date and stamp of rabbi who issued the certificate.

It may also be a certification marking on individual retail packaging of items which have been certified as Kosher. This marking is usually a basic stamp or emblem indicating the issuing rabbinical court. Modern hechsherim display sophisticated holograms and seals which are hard to forge.

A hechsher is typically issued for food products and is issued on non-food items such as cleaning agents and disposable cutlery which come in contact with foods certifying its ingredients as not containing any animal extracts or other halakhically prohibited substances.

The dietary laws of kashrut specify food items that may be eaten and others that are prohibited as set out in the commandments of the Torah.

Observant Jews will generally only eat permitted foods. To assist Jewish consumers, rabbinic authorities produce and regulate their own hechsherim. It is usually Orthodox rabbis who assume the jobs of mashgichim (singular: mashgiach, "supervisor"). This means that they will "supervise" the products and processes that manufacture kosher food to ensure compliance with the required standards. The mashgiach will allow the manufacturer to apply a hechsher to the packaging of the product only if found to contain only kosher ingredients and produced in accordance with halakha.