Rabbi Osher Yaakov Westheim, one of Manchester’s most senior rabbis and a world-respected authority on the laws of kashrut, has died from coronavirus.

The charedi rabbi was one of the Jewish world’s most respected authorities on the laws of kashrut. He became known for surprise inspections at sites under his supervision around Europe.

Rabbi Westhein, who was 71, joined the Manchester Beth Din in 1976, where he headed the kashrut department.

In 2004, he left the Manchester Beth Din to form the Badatz Igud Harabbonim.

He did not believe that non-Jews ought to be involved in the manufacture of kosher products and demanded that Jewish producers be present at every stage.

He was most famous for his expertise in the sweets industry, whose kashrut certification in North America and Israel was often coordinated with him.

His expertise and authority ensured that he was regularly consulted by numerous multinational firms seeking certification, such as Heinz, BP Chemicals, Proctor & Gamble and Cargill.

He also granted kosher certifications to a number of Kellogs’ products after years of research.

Rabbi Westheim was born in 1948 in Gateshead and later studied at Gateshead Yeshiva and Yeshiva Be’er Yaakov in Israel.

In 1968, he attended Manchester Kollel and received semicha in 1971.  

Rabbi Westheim, besides his Yiddish, English and Hebrew, was also conversant in German and French.

He was intimately involved in the establishment of Whitefield Mikveh in 1990 and established his own yeshiva, Yeshivas Ezras Torah, in September 1995.

Manchester Rabbi Jonathan Guttentag paid tribute to Rabbi Westheim, saying: “He was a towering figure in the world of product kashrut, his name a brand and institution all of its own, deservedly because of the high standards that he represented and upheld.”

He was “an outstanding Torah scholar and poseyk decisor, he was a Rabbi’s Rabbi, consulted locally and internationally,” Rabbi Guttentag continued, “younger rabbis particularly valued his wisdom, his support and his guidance.”