The Dietary Laws (Kashrut)

The movement holds that the dietary commandments of Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 remain in force. These establish clear biological markers for which animals may be eaten:

• Land animals: must have fully split hooves AND chew the cud. Both criteria are required together. This permits cattle, sheep, goats, and deer; it excludes pigs (split hooves, does not chew cud) and rabbits (chews cud-like, no split hooves).
• Water creatures: must have fins AND scales. This permits most common fish (salmon, tuna, carp) and excludes shellfish (shrimp, crab, lobster), catfish, eel, and shark.
• Birds: the Torah lists approximately twenty forbidden species directly rather than providing a universal rule. Permitted birds are generally understood through tradition — chicken, turkey, duck, and goose are widely accepted.
• Insects: generally forbidden, with specific exceptions for certain locusts (Leviticus 11:22), though this provision is rarely relevant in modern Western practice.

The Prohibition on Blood

Separate from the question of which animals may be eaten is the prohibition on consuming blood, stated clearly and repeatedly:

Proper slaughter therefore requires a single swift cut to the throat (trachea and esophagus) with a smooth, sharp blade — a method designed to cause rapid blood loss and minimize suffering — followed by full drainage of the blood, and salting of the meat to draw out residual blood before cooking. This method is called shechita in Jewish practice. Meat that has not been slaughtered and prepared in this manner is not considered acceptable regardless of the animal species.

Meat and Dairy Separation

The prohibition on mixing meat and dairy derives from a phrase that appears three separate times in the Torah:

Rabbinic tradition extended this into a comprehensive separation of all meat and dairy products. The movement generally maintains this separation at the meal level — meat and dairy are not consumed at the same meal — though the degree of separation (separate cookware, separate waiting periods) varies between households. The reasoning offered within the movement includes avoiding the mixture of life-giving substance (milk) with death (slaughtered meat) at the same table.

Halal Meat — Permitted or Not?

This question produces genuine disagreement within the movement (see also: Differences of Opinion). The practical overlap between halal and kosher standards is significant:

Many households within the movement accept certified halal meat as sufficient in the absence of certified kosher meat, particularly given the shared slaughter method and blood prohibition. Others accept only certified kosher meat. This is a documented point of disagreement rather than a settled position across the movement.

Modern Practical Notes

In Western countries where kosher-certified products are widely available (supermarkets, online retailers), adherents generally source certified kosher meat, dairy, and packaged products. The kosher certification (hechsher) mark on packaging simplifies decision-making for processed foods, which may otherwise contain prohibited ingredients. In locations with limited kosher access, halal products are the common practical alternative. Produce, eggs, and unprocessed fish with visible scales are generally treated as unrestricted by most households.