Kashrut in Israel Explained: Rabbanut, Mehadrin, Badatz and What Matches the OU

In Israel, kashrut is a state system, not a private label. By law only the Chief Rabbinate, a local city rabbi or the army rabbinate can certify a business as kosher, and most restaurants, hotels, factories and supermarkets carry that certificate. On top of the state standard sit stricter private certifications, known as the badatz agencies, each tied to a community. So the question a newcomer asks changes: not "is it kosher?" but "whose kosher, and at what level?" This guide explains the levels, what each one actually covers, and which of them match the standard an American family keeps with an OU or Star-K hechsher.

One thing first: this is a practical map, not a psak. Every agency quoted here, the OU and Star-K included, says the same: settle your standard with your own rabbi.

The short answer for OU and Star-K families

The usual starting point for a Modern Orthodox family that keeps the OU or Star-K standard in America is:

• Rabbanut Mehadrin, and in Jerusalem specifically the Jerusalem Religious Council's mehadrin certificate, or
• a recognised private badatz such as the Eda HaChareidit, Badatz Mehadrin (Rav Rubin), Rav Landau or She'erit Yisrael, all stricter than the typical US standard, or
• OU Israel, which certifies a small number of restaurants and hotels itself.

Plain Rabbanut (the regular level) is where most families draw the line, because it allows things the OU does not: meat that is not glatt, beef gelatin, and powdered milk without supervision. Rav Aryeh Leibowitz, teaching American visitors, puts it simply: eat where there is Rabbanut Mehadrin or a respected private kashrut provider. In packaged food the regular level is often fine, because the product usually carries a second, stricter symbol; read the label, not the shop.

How the system works

• The law. The Kashrut Fraud Prohibition Law (1983) lets only the Chief Rabbinate Council, a local city rabbi or the army's rabbinate issue a kashrut certificate (teudat kashrut). In Jerusalem that means the Jerusalem Religious Council.
• Private supervision without the word "kosher". A 2017 High Court ruling lets a restaurant describe its own kashrut standards and supervision, provided it does not call itself kosher or display a certificate. This is how Tzohar-supervised restaurants operate.
• The reform that came and went. A 2021 reform was meant to let licensed private bodies issue official certificates. Only one small part took effect: a business could hire another city's religious council. The rest was frozen from late 2022.
• The 2026 law. On 15 July 2026 the Knesset passed an amendment (46 to 41) that repeals the 2021 reform and returns certification to the Chief Rabbinate, local rabbis and the army rabbinate. It also moves kashrut supervisors onto the religious councils' payroll, so they are no longer paid by the businesses they supervise. Tzohar was granted a licence on 1 July 2026, which the Religious Services Ministry immediately disputed; the High Court hearing is set for 2 November 2026. Check the current status before relying on a Tzohar certificate.
• Imports. A foreign hechsher alone does not make a product legally kosher in Israel: every imported food sold as kosher also needs the Chief Rabbinate's import approval.

Rabbanut regular and Rabbanut Mehadrin: what each covers

The Rabbinate certifies at two main levels, and the difference is not only how often the supervisor comes. It is a set of halachic positions on meat, milk and the laws of produce grown in the Land of Israel. The table follows the published summaries by Star-K and the OU; standards can differ between cities.

Jerusalem's Religious Council uses three levels on its own certificates: Kasher, Mehadrin and Mehuderet, an in-between level introduced in 2013. Its public search at rabanut.org.il shows which one a business holds.

Two caveats. First, a regular Rabbanut business may use ingredients certified by any city's Rabbanut, and cities differ; the Jerusalem and Rechovot mehadrin certificates have the strongest reputations. Second, Israel's State Comptroller has repeatedly criticised uneven supervision across councils, which is part of why stricter private certifications exist.

The private hechsherim (badatz)

A badatz is a private rabbinical court's certification. Each reflects the standard of a particular community, and most are stricter than the Rabbinate's mehadrin level. On packaged goods you will often see several symbols on one product. The main ones you will meet in Jerusalem:

The Hashgacha Pratit initiative, which you may see mentioned in older articles, closed in 2018 and its businesses moved to Tzohar.

What the American agencies say

• cRc (Chicago Rabbinical Council) publishes a list of foreign agencies it recommends. Its Israeli entries are the Eda HaChareidit, Badatz Mehadrin (Rav Rubin), Rav Landau, She'erit Yisrael, Rav Efrati's institute and Rav Seckbach. The list notes that an agency's absence does not mean the cRc considers it substandard. See the cRc list.
• OU does not publish a list of accepted Israeli certifications. Its Israel guide lists the organisations for information, says the list is not an endorsement, and tells readers to ask a rabbi they trust. OU Israel certifies its own restaurants.
• Star-K has written that the same product in Israel can come in regular and mehadrin versions in "the exact same wrapper", with only the symbol different. For tithes it named as reliable the Eda HaChareidit, Rav Landau, Chug Chatam Sofer, Agudat Yisrael, She'erit Yisrael and the Jerusalem and Rechovot Rabbanut Mehadrin.

The comparison is a general orientation drawn from those sources, not a ruling by any agency.

Reading a restaurant's certificate

Ask "yesh teudah?" and you will be shown the certificate on the wall. Check:

• Who issued it: the religious council, a badatz logo, or OU Israel.
• The level: kasher (regular) or mehadrin, and in Jerusalem possibly mehuderet.
• Meat, dairy or parve: basari, chalavi or parve.
• The dates: a certificate is valid for a set period, in Hebrew and Gregorian dates. An expired one means what it says.
• The supervisor's name and phone number, which you can call.

Fake certificates exist, especially before Pesach, when a separate kosher-for-Pesach certificate is required. For any Jerusalem business, the Religious Council's search at rabanut.org.il confirms the certificate and its level.

A restaurant that describes its own "supervision" without the word kosher is legally allowed to; whether you rely on that supervision is your call. A sign that says "kosher kitchen" with no certificate and no named supervisor has no outside check at all. At hotels and events, ask who certifies the caterer, not only the venue.

In the supermarket

• Read the symbol, not the shop. Shufersal, Rami Levy and Osher Ad all stock products at several levels, sometimes the same product in the same packaging with a different hechsher.
• Imports show their home hechsher (OU, OK, Star-K and others) alongside the Rabbinate's import approval.
• "Avkat chalav nochri" in an ingredient list means unsupervised milk powder, acceptable only at the regular Rabbanut level.
• Pesach: "kasher le-Pesach le-ochlei kitniyot" means kosher for Pesach only for people who eat kitniyot.
• Produce: fruit and vegetables grown in Israel are subject to tithes. Supermarket produce is often treated as doubtfully tithed, so many people separate terumot and ma'asrot at home (in a case of doubt, without a blessing); ask your rabbi how you should do it. Shuk stalls may have no certificate at all.
• Shmita: the next shmita year is 5789, from September 2028 to September 2029. Produce and products will be labelled heter mechira, otzar beit din or yevul nochri.

For the shops themselves, see supermarkets in Jerusalem and grocery shopping; for choosing a restaurant, eating out in Jerusalem.

Hebrew you will meet

• teudat kashrut — kashrut certificate
• hashgacha / hechsher — supervision / certification
• mehadrin — the stricter standard
• mashgiach — kashrut supervisor
• basari / chalavi / parve — meat / dairy / neither
• chalak Beit Yosef — the strictest standard for meat
• terumot u-ma'asrot — tithes on produce
• heter mechira / otzar beit din / yevul nochri — the three ways produce is handled in a shmita year
• le-ochlei kitniyot — for those who eat kitniyot on Pesach
• avkat chalav nochri — unsupervised milk powder

More everyday words are in our Hebrew vocabulary guide.

Common questions

What is the Israeli equivalent of the OU?

There is no single one. Families who keep the OU or Star-K standard in America generally eat at places with Rabbanut Mehadrin (in Jerusalem, the Religious Council's mehadrin certificate) or a recognised badatz, and at the few OU Israel-certified restaurants. Plain Rabbanut is below the US standard on meat, gelatin and milk powder. Confirm your own standard with your rabbi.

What is the difference between Rabbanut and mehadrin?

Rabbanut regular is the state's basic standard. Mehadrin is the Rabbinate's stricter level: glatt meat, no unsupervised milk powder or beef gelatin, stricter handling of tithes and shmita, and more supervision.

Is a badatz stricter than Rabbanut Mehadrin?

Usually, yes. Each badatz reflects a community's standard, and the major ones are stricter than the Rabbinate's mehadrin level on several points. "Stricter" is not the same as "required": which you rely on is a question for your rabbi.

Which Israeli certifications does the cRc accept?

Its published list recommends the Eda HaChareidit, Badatz Mehadrin (Rav Rubin), Rav Landau, She'erit Yisrael, Rav Efrati and Rav Seckbach, and says that an agency's absence does not make it substandard. The OU does not publish such a list.

How do I check a restaurant's kashrut certificate in Jerusalem?

Look at the issuer, level, meat or dairy status and expiry date on the certificate, and search the business on the Jerusalem Religious Council's site, rabanut.org.il. You can also call the supervisor whose number is on the certificate.

What did the 2026 kashrut law change?

Passed on 15 July 2026, it repealed the 2021 reform that would have allowed private kashrut certification, returned certification to the Chief Rabbinate and local rabbis, and moved supervisors onto the religious councils' payroll. Tzohar's licence is before the High Court, with a hearing on 2 November 2026.

Something changed, or an agency we should add? Tell us and we will fix it.