The Not-So Kosher LeFesach Pierogi

This is not exactly a scribal error, but operates under the same conditions as one that would produce one.

Look quickly at the picture of pierogi that I snapped yesterday in Teterboro Costco. This was in the kosher refrigerator section, where all other items are certified kosher for Pesach. The CRC certification is in the bottom right corner of the box.

It looks to me like there is a capital P next to the CRC insignia, indicating that it is kosher for Passover. However, let us zoom in:

It is a stylized letter D. Meanwhile, the edge of the triangle, and the end of the R in the all-caps KOSHER seem to form the bottom portion of the leg of a P, and the D forms the top portion of the leg of a P, and its loop.

In Costco in Teterboro, they put the kosher refrigerated section all together. And before Pesach, almost everything in the section is indeed kosher for Pesach. But this item is included in the section, and isn’t chametz-free.

Last year, shortly before Pesach, I was briefly misled. I saw it at a slight distance, was surprised, then read the ingredients. I only realized it was chametz after a minute or two, so didn’t buy it.

Yesterday, doing some pre-Pesach shopping, I saw a Jewish woman considering purchase. I told her that it wasn’t kosher for Pesach, and she told me that, surprisingly, it was. I asked where and she indicated the kashrut symbol. I explained the problem, and she then realized that it was a D, not a P.

So, double-check to make sure you didn’t purchase these; and consider sharing this warning to others.