Dear Friends,
The Vaad HaKashrus of Fairfield County (VKFC) is pleased to announce to the community that beginning Tuesday, August 27th- the 21st of Elul at 11:00 am, Kof-K Kosher Supervision will assume oversight of the 16 Handles franchise at 219 Bedford Street in Stamford. Kof-K sought our permission, invitation and blessing to offer supervision in our communities. We fully endorse and welcome the Kof-K into Fairfield County.
Over the past few years, 16 Handles frozen yogurt franchises have opened around the tri-state area and beyond. We were not consulted when a kosher supervising agency came into Fairfield County to offer its hashgacha. We tried to reach out to this organization to perform due diligence for our congregants, but were not accommodated. After researching and investigating the situation, based on a variety of factors, we were forced not to recommend the supervision.
In addition to standard kashrut issues, what complicated matters was that the franchise was Jewishly-owned and open on Shabbat, which poses questions of profiting on Shabbat. While some employ a halachic mechanism known as a shtar mechirah (a document of sale on the Sabbath), which formally assigns ownership to a non-Jew on Shabbat, our Vaad was uncomfortable executing this document. As a matter of policy, while some prominent national kashruth agencies rely on the shtar mechirah, others do not.
When the corporate offices of 16 Handles approached the Kof-K to certify all of their locations, they contacted us and asked if we would invite them in to Fairfield County. They told us that if we were not eager for them to supervise the 16 Handles in the county, they would not do so. Our Vaad deliberated and ultimately decided that while we were uncomfortable executing such a document, we would accept such an arrangement if it included a provision that the Jewish person not be in the store on Shabbat, and was developed by a renowned and reliable agency to do so. We are confident in Kof-K's supervision of the kashrut, the execution of the shtar mechirah, and their continued high standards of supervision.
We are proud to be working with the Kof-K and we ask the community to support the franchise. Eric Mallon, the owner, has now agreed, as a basic prerequisite to any shtar mechirah, not to come to work at his store on Shabbat. As a community supporting the observance of the Sabbath, we should reward Eric for his sacrifice and affirmative statement of the Day of Rest. We are proud of our Vaad's standards and at the same time, recognize the value of finding a sanctioned way for people to enjoy kosher food in our community.
Kof-K hopes to offer supervision to the 16 Handles in Fairfield in the coming months.
We welcome any questions you may have and wish one and all a wonderful rest of the summer and a meaningful yamim nora'im (High Holidays).
Vaad HaKashrus of Fairfield County
Rabbi Fred Hyman, President (New Haven)
Rabbi Yaakov Mendelson, Vice President and Av Beit Din (Bridgeport)
Rabbi Elly Krimsky, Vice President (Stamford)
Rabbi Daniel Cohen, Treasurer (Stamford)