hbb@hou5a.UUCP (H.B.Braude) (11/19/84)
[the 1st posting of this article didn't make it out.]
A Rabbi I respect made a ruling that one would be able to drink
coffee from a public vending machine, even if that machine also
dispensed non-kosher products such as chicken soup.
The reason he gave was that he sat down with someone from a
vending machine manufacturer and was shown how the different
drinks are stored in the machine and how they are ultimately
dispensed to the customer's cup. Apparently, the manufacturer
showed that the foods never mix (they wouldn't want the taste of
one to adversely affect another.)
This would only apply to plain coffee, not the extras (like
cream) that one might be able to select from the machine (I guess
sweetener would be ok, since they would most likely use real
sugar, not substitutes. But creamer might be a powdered
substitute which may require supervision.)
I feel somewhat uncomfortable going along with this 'kulah'
(leniency,) as I can imagine the splatter of food stuffs that do
not go into one cup comming in contact with subsequent vendings
that travel the same path (the cup is dropped in the same place
for all selections.) Of course, I wouldn't crticise someone that
followed that ruling, since I consider the Rabbi to be reliable.
Any insights?
--
Harlan B. Braude
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