When the histrionics die down and people look at the issues rationally, they notice that it’s much more nuanced than the sound bites allow. But in any event, the business as it was was simply not sustainable and they will have to explore a different paradigm to succeed in the future.

Ironically they are as much a victim of their own inability to articulate what they do right - when I met with Sholom Mordechai, he showed me a rendering plant they were building on site to use tallow produced by the plant to generate power - allowing him to save trucking the fat out and buying and trucking fuel in! How cool is that! Sadly, I’m probably the only one who knows and appreciates the “green” implications of his decision.

I’m also going to continue eating Rubashkin’s products, like Aaron’s Best Corn Beef (real good)!! There is a rumor that all of this was a plot against them by their rival, Empire. Was Empire’s business doing that poorly that they needed to start spreading lies and create unnecessary attention to Rubashkins?

Also, one thing AgriProcessors is doing, and sadly Empire is not, is giving away meats and other foods to the Iowa victims of last week’s tragedy. Its horrible to hear about those people who lost so much, but at least they will still be able to feed their families, before getting back on the ground.

Thanks Rabbi Shmuel. I felt it was important to have both sides of the conversation represented on the blog.

Thanks for your comment Brenda - I am by no means an Agriprocessors supporter after talking with Zalman. However, I was able to see that some of the major problems associated with Agriprocessors are not necessarily the result of “evil” leadership, but more of an “evil” system of industrial agriculture across the board. However, I still expect far better from the kosher industry and think we as a community have a right to demand it.

Thanks Phyllis! Would you be willing to send me the links of the places you’ve seen the interview on the web? You can send links to editor at jcarrot dot org.

It also troubled me a bit that he referred to the laborers as Mexicans. I think that might reflect a lack of awareness of these folks as individuals because surely they are not all from Mexico, but are a mix of people from Guatemala and Mexico.

Jewish corporate America doesn’t have to have a higher standard of ethics. But an employer has a responsibility, halachic or legal, to ensure the safety of his employers. So the Rabbi’s statement,

“I personally don’t believe they’re doing anything that’s atrocious or horrible, I think they’re trying to make money and they could be more professional and organized – that’s all.”

is not acceptable. Rubashkin’s innocent “non professionalism” ended up hurting a lot of workers.
That is not acceptable.

Overall, I think that Richard Schwartz’ post says it all, but it’s a lot to take in and more than most kosher meat eaters are interested in right now.

However, even if conditions at Agriprocessors are improved and all the negative factors recently being discussed are eliminated, there are still some important realities related to the production and consumption of meat and other animal products, that are doing immense harm to society and our planet, that should be considered:

* Animal-centered diets are contributing to an epidemic of heart disease, several types of cancer and other diseases in the Jewish and other communities;

* At a time when food prices are skyrocketing, food riots are occurring in many areas and an estimated 20 million people are dying annually worldwide from hunger and its effects, over 70 percent of the grain produced in the United States and over 40 percent produced worldwide are fed to farmed animals.

* In an increasingly thirsty and energy-dependent world, animal-based diets require up to 14 times as much water and 10 times as much energy as vegan (all plants) diets.

* While the world is increasingly threatened by global warming, animal-based agriculture emits more greenhouse gases (in CO2 equivalents) than all the cars and other means of transportation worldwide combined (18 percent vs. 13.5 percent).

* Even if animals are slaughtered strictly according to Jewish law, with minimum pain, billions of animals still suffer greatly from cruel treatment on factory farms.

* Making all of the above points more serious, the consumption of animal products is projected to double in 50 years. If this happens, it will make it very difficult, if not impossible, to reduce greenhouse emissions enough to avoid very severe effects from global climate change.

It is essential that our rabbis and other Jewish leaders recognize that a major shift toward plant-based diets is essential to avoid the unprecedented catastrophe that the world is rapidly approaching and to move our precious, but imperiled, planet to a sustainable path.

When we read daily reports of the effects of global climate change, such as record heat waves, severe storms, widespread droughts, and the melting of glaciers and polar icecaps; when some climate scientists are warning that global climate change may spin out of control with disastrous consequences unless major changes are soon made; when a recent report indicated that our oceans may be virtually free of fish by 2050; when species of plants and animals are disappearing at the fastest rate in history; when it is projected that half of the world’s people will live in areas chronically short of water by 2050; it is essential that the Jewish community fulfill our mandate to be a “light unto the nations” and lead efforts to address these critical issues.

It is essential that rabbis and other Jewish leaders to make Jews aware of how animal-based diets and agriculture violate basic Jewish mandates to preserve human health, treat animals compassionately, protect the environment, conserve natural resources and help hungry people.

Further information about these issues can be found at JewishVeg.com. JVNA will provide complimentary copies of its new documentary A SACRED DUTY: APPLYING JEWISH VALUES TO HELP HEAL THE WORLD rabbis and other Jewish leaders who will contact us (president@JewishVeg.com) and indicate how they will use them to involve their congregations on the issues. The entire movie can be seen and further information about it can be found at ASacredDuty.com.

How about a respectful dialogue/debate sponsored by Hazon on “Should Jews Be Vegetarians?”

Shabbat shalom!