When buying nuts, is it necessary for them to have kosher certification? This is a question you might ask yourself, knowing that nuts, in general, are kosher since they grow from the ground. According to the basic laws of kosher, plant matter is fundamentally okay to eat. Therefore, what is the purpose of certification on nut products?

The Perks of Certification for Nuts

When you see kosher certification, it amounts to a promise that the nuts have been held to a standard higher than even the law of the land requires. When done correctly, the supervision food must go through to receive certification ensures that only the ingredients listed on the label are present in the food. It means that, in the case of nuts, that the product has been washed and checked thoroughly for bugs. It also indicates that all ingredients used, be they oils, spices or other foods added during roasting and packaging, were all held to the same stringent standards as well.

Additionally, certified nuts will not have been subject to cross-contamination. Meaning, for example, if they are marked as pareve, they will not have had any contact with any dairy or meat particulates, and will not have been processed on the same machinery. If the food is marked “kosher for Passover” then there will be absolutely no grain matter in the final product. If there is any cross contamination, certification will either not be given or requires that the packaging specify that the nuts came in contact with other substances. This is why you’ll sometime see certification with the letters “DE,” which indicated that dairy equipment was used in processing the food.

The Bottom Line

With kosher certification comes consumer peace of mind. For these reasons a variety of consumers look for certification. A vegan can rest assured that the nuts they are buying are indeed only nuts. Someone suffering from a dairy or gluten allergy can eat safely, without worrying about having a reaction to trace amounts of an allergen. Adams Seeds are all under the Mehadrin certification so that buyers can rest assured that they are getting the very best and that what they see on the label is exactly what they’ll get.