Man reluctantly stops marketing his shellfish as kosher

HOUMA, La. -- At age 70, oyster distributor Leroy "Lee Lee" Chauvin has learned something new: It's never kosher to sell "kosher oysters."

Chauvin is proud of a process he developed to purify his oysters. He knew a kosher diet was considered pure and clean, and he believed the description fit his oysters perfectly. In September, he began advertising his shellfish with signs saying they were "Certified Kosher."

But Chauvin has since learned that the term means something more in Judaism. He learned that oysters, by definition, cannot be kosher. He read in his local newspaper that a Jewish woman found his signs offensive. He has begun fixing his signs by covering up the offending word.

"I'm claiming a sand- and grit-free oyster with a natural, pure taste of the sea. It's got that salty taste, and that's what I'm after," he said.

But that doesn't make them kosher: All shellfish are off-limits for those who follow a kosher diet.

Rabbis who heard about Chauvin's signs weren't offended -- just amused.

"It's absurd," said Yisroel Shiff, rabbi at Beth Israel Congregation in New Orleans. "I can't even say that it's even misleading anyone, because everyone already knows that oysters are not kosher."