NYC Rabbis Are Chill With Kosher Edibles
(Photo: Via Poster Boy, Flickr)
The Post learned this week that a Colorado-based weed manufacturing firm is working with at least one New York City rabbi to shop around edibles that can be consumed by the observant Jewish community. In light of (pun totally intended, sorry) the Brooklyn District Attorney’s public statement of higher tolerance (oops) for possessing small amounts of marijuana and his promise not to pursue such cases, and the Mayor’s subsequent announcement last November that the NYPD would no longer be making arrests for low-level marijuana possession, it makes sense that pot entrepreneurs are making inroads into New York City, what’s likely to be an emerging market.
Rabbi Moshe Elefant spoke to the Post on behalf of the Orthodox Union which heads a kosher certification program, and revealed that he’s been working with an unnamed Colorado weed company toward making kosher edibles available. The Rabbi expressed openness toward medical marijuana as a treatment option for Jewish patients: “We found it fascinating actually, and we believe there’s room for this in the world of kosher certification,” he told the Post reporter.
All soil-grown plants are considered kosher, so long as they are not infested with bugs. However additional ingredients that go into recipes for edible pot products are potentially of concern to observants Jews, these include dairy products.
Last summer, the New York legislature and Governor Cuomo voted to enact the Compassionate Care Act, which legalized medical marijuana in the state. But things are still in limbo as would-be marijuana manufacturers are vying to be designated as one of just five of the state’s specially designated manufacturers. The program is expected to be in working order by January 2016.
