The Orthodox Union has declined to certify plant-based pork products marketed by Impossible Foods as kosher.
The Orthodox Union is the largest and most influential certifier of kosher products and it said the decision was a close one that could have gone either way.
The company’s Impossible Burger did receive kosher certification, as did its 14-oz rolls of Impossible Sausage.
But the idea of certifying a product that carries the name pork proved to be the stumbling block.
Rabbi Menachem Genack, chief executive officer of the Orthodox Union’s kosher division, said if Impossible Pork “is completely plant-derived, it’s kosher. Just in terms of sensitivities to the consumer … it didn’t get it.”
