Kosher Law Enforcement

Outside of Israel, New York State has the largest population of kosher consumers. More than 135,000 kosher products are available on  market shelves.

The Department of Agriculture and Markets conducts kosher surveillance inspections to make sure all products are registered and all establishments that sell kosher products are in compliance with the kosher laws. Per New York's Kosher Law Protection Act of 2004, which requires that consumers of food represented as kosher in New York be provided with information identifying the person or organization certifying that food as kosher, the Department also maintains an online registry of food represented as kosher. 

The New York State Kosher Food Registry allows consumers to search for kosher-certified food products. The registry is currently under construction. To find out more about the registry or to find a registered food, please email [email protected]. 

If you are involved in the kosher food industry as a producer, processor, packer, distributor, or retailer of kosher food products, as a certifier of kosher food products, or as an operator of a food establishment who prepares kosher food, you will need to file product and certifying information with the Department.

The responsibility for registering the person or organization who certifies a food as kosher and for filing information about products offered for sale as kosher depends on whether or not the food is in package form. A food is in package form when it is not intended to be consumed at the point of manufacture and is packaged in advance of sale in units suitable for retail sale. Read below for more information about the different filing and registration requirements:

• If the food is in package form, the producer or distributor must register the name, address, and phone number of the person who certified the food as kosher with the Department.
• If the food is not in package form, the person who manufactures, processes, packs, or sells it must register the name, address, and phone number of the kosher certifier with the Department.
  • Examples of non-packaged food include: nuts sold in bulk, repackaged potato salad from the deli, store baked breads, and fresh meat.
• Kosher certifiers who certify non-packaged food must file with the Department a statement of their qualifications to provide kosher certification. The statement may include background, training, education, experience, and any other information that shows the kosher certifier's qualifications.
• Food establishments, restaurants, and caterers that prepare and sell food as kosher on their premises must file the name, address, and phone number of the kosher certifier with the Department. They must also complete a “Kosher Certification Form,” file it with the Department and post the form in their establishment in a location readily visible to consumers.

If any of the information filed with the Department changes, the person who filed it must notify the Department of the changes as quickly as possible.

Filing must be done 30 days in advance of offering or distributing food as kosher in New York.

Please download the registration and certification documents below.

The online New York State Kosher Food Registry is currently under construction. Please email [email protected] with any questions.