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Observant Jews sue over hot dog casings
By Rob Olmstead
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Posted Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Morris Gershengorin has a beef with Vienna Beef.

So do Michael Smolyansky and Marina Bartashnik.

But it's not about the beef. It's about the pork casings.

The three self-described observant Jews are suing the Chicago meat
company for not clearly advertising that their "all beef" hot dogs
are encased in pork casings.

Pork is forbidden for observant Jews, and the three plaintiffs say they
unknowingly ate pork against the teachings of their religion because
Vienna Beef promoted, sold and advertised its hot dogs as "all
beef" or "pure beef," according to a suit filed Monday in the
chancery department of Cook County circuit court.

Later, the suit said, they were horrified to see on a "wholesale bulk
delivery box" the ingredient listing "pork casings."

"Due to Vienna Beef's material omissions regarding its Natural
Casing Beef hotdogs, plaintiffs and others have been eating ... hot
dogs with the belief that these hot dogs did not contain pork, when in
reality, these hot dogs contain pork," the suit said.

Now, the three, suing with the aid of the Consumer Advocacy Center in
Chicago, are seeking class-action status for their suit, which seeks
unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.

The plaintiffs, their lawyers and representatives of Vienna Beef could
not be reached Monday evening.