The food market is flooded with a variety of kashrut certificates. This can prove quite confusing to the uninformed shopper. It is therefore important to understand that a kashrut certificate is like a seal of approval, attesting to the fact that a qualified body has supervised the kashrut of the product or the eatery. Sometimes one supervisory authority has more stringent requirements than another, so that the certification issued by that authority will meet higher standards. Unfortunately, there are also constant attempts to deceive the kashrut authorities, and therefore closer supervision ensures a higher level of kashrut.

Naturally, a better-quality certification also entails a greater expense, as strict supervision requires an expanded team of supervisors and more equipment to carry out the job.