He tried to get into Montreal's kosher market. It led to a battle over alleged meat monopoly

Mendy Boyarsky is fed up with the cost of kosher meat in Montreal and he’s on a mission to bring prices down. 

But the owner of Aleph Meats is facing an uphill battle. 

Trying to get a foothold in the marketplace is now leading to a potential legal showdown at the federal Competition Tribunal. 

Boyarsky alleges the Jewish Community Council of Montreal (JCC), which operates Montreal Kosher, known as MK Kosher certification, has used its dominant position in the market to squeeze out competition among meat suppliers — like himself — and pressure local congregations to buy only MK approved kosher products. 

The JCC oversees many aspects of life in Montreal’s devout Jewish community including the certification of kosher meat through its non-profit MK Kosher. The JCC denies Boyarsky's allegations.

But Boyarsky thinks the certifier is driving up the cost of food.

“They don't allow competition in the market. So they're able to charge exorbitant prices,” he said.

“There hasn't been another option other than the MK in Montreal for who knows how long,” he says, as he proudly shows off the different cuts of certified kosher meat at Aleph Meats, located in the city of Côte Saint-Luc, in Montreal's west end.

Boyarsky alleges his attempts to break into the commercial side of Montreal’s kosher meat industry are being blocked by the JCC and he can't sell to most synagogues or banquet spaces, for example, because they are exclusively dealing with MK Kosher. 

He chose to operate outside of MK Kosher’s certification system and to use a different kosher meat certifier — Kashrut Supervision du Rabbinat (KSR).

“We have to be able to sell it to the synagogues, we have to be able to sell anywhere we want to be able to sell to,” he says. 

Without access, even if the retail side of his business goes well, he says he won’t be able to scale his business and survive.

“We have to do it on mass production in order for this thing to work," he said. "We’re kosher certified and we need to have all the gates open for us."

If successful, Boyarsky’s lawsuit could force the JCC to pay millions in damages. 

A case that could test the new limits of Canada’s Competition Tribunal 

Having a case heard at Canada's Competition Tribunal can be difficult, but Boyarsky’s lawyer says the timing may be right to challenge the JCC’s alleged market dominance.

“There's been a groundswell of support from the Montreal Jewish community that wants to see this case brought to the Competition Tribunal,” said Joshua Krane, a competition law specialist and partner at MLT Aikins in Ottawa.

In response to the rising cost of living and skyrocketing grocery bills, Bill C-56 and Bill C-59, were passed by Parliament in December 2023 and June 2024 — overhauling Canada's Competition Act and expanding private access to the Competition Tribunal.

WATCH | Jewish Community Council of Montreal accused of driving up costs through its kosher certifier:

Is there a kosher meat monopoly in Montreal? He’s alleging it's driving up prices

3 hours ago|

Duration

5:16

Krane says the tribunal now has the option to consider a case based on public interest grounds.

Federal Court Judge Jocelyne Gagné will decide whether Boyarsky’s lawsuit has merit and will be heard by the tribunal. 

In an affidavit, the JCC denies its certifier enforces any exclusivity agreements with the exception of banquet halls.

In those cases, the JCC argues it’s not practical for synagogues to make sure a kitchen is kosher to MK Kosher’s standards every time a different certifier is used. It added that it does not agree with KSR about what constitutes proper kosher standards. 

Rabbi Haim Nataf, who was authorized to speak on behalf of the JCC and MK Kosher, told CBC Boyarsky’s lawsuit is founded on “misconceptions” regarding Montreal’s kosher market.

Nataf said it is a mistake for Boyarsky, a meat seller, to claim he’s in competition with a certifier that doesn’t sell kosher products. He denies that MK Kosher has the capacity to influence pricing.

What is kosher and why is it more expensive?

The term kosher translates to "fit to eat,” and what qualifies comes down to standards set by Jewish community leaders and their interpretation of ancient texts and traditions. 

“(Keeping kosher) is one of the definitive characteristics of an observant Jewish home,” says Rabbi Reuben Poupko of the Beth Israel Beth Aaron Congregation, who is not taking sides in the dispute.

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In general, Poupko says the method of slaughtering the animal is more humane and pain free. Every step of the process is carefully monitored with inspections. 

But “keeping kosher” comes at a cost. 

“I've never heard anyone complain it was too inexpensive,” Poupko says. “It is significantly more expensive than regular meat.”

Rabbi Haim Nataf, spokesperson for the JCC and MK Kosher, says setting kosher standards is a religious issue. He says as a certifier, MK Kosher doesn’t have the ability to set prices. (Karol Dahl/CBC)

Nataf told CBC at MK Kosher, the JCC has full-time employees to ensure its strict religious standards are observed throughout the process. This includes drop-in inspections at restaurants and synagogues and 24/7 video surveillance in their prep spaces and kitchens.

MK Kosher is paid a one-time fee for some services, such as attending a slaughter, and recurring fees for others, like maintaining an MK Kosher certificate for restaurants and synagogues. 

Nataf rejected the suggestion that MK Kosher brings in a big profit. 

“I wouldn't call it a money maker. It definitely has a surplus that is reallocated to other community needs,” Nataf said. 

He calculates the MK Kosher certification system only adds about 51 cents per kilogram to the overall cost of meat at retail.

Montrealers travel to New York to buy cheaper food

But Poupko says many community members think Montreal’s prices are higher than other markets. 

“The community is divided between those who are agitated and frustrated and those who have quietly surrendered. But not too many people are happy,” Poupko said. 

CBC spoke to several of Boyarsky’s customers who said they travel to New York to buy food ahead of holidays or if they are planning to host a large private event.

CBC’s investigation found that at certain locations in New York —  such as Bingo Wholesale, a well-known grocer — there are significant savings on beef. Even after factoring in currency conversion, ground beef was on average 40 per cent to 50 per cent cheaper at Bingo Wholesale than at some of Montreal’s MK Kosher certified butchers and grocery stores.

Frustrated with local prices, kosher meat customers in Montreal told CBC it's common to travel to New York in search of deals. (Louis-Marie Philidor/CBC)

Between Oct. 16 and 19, CBC visited four major grocery chains that had kosher counters and two kosher butcher shops in Montreal to check prices. 

Nataf, with the JCC and MK Kosher, says Bingo Wholesale is an outlier in New York. 

He doesn’t believe beef prices are higher in Montreal and argues consumers need to shop around.

“I’m convinced there are very reasonable deals out there,” he said.

Boyarsky and the JCC dispute the overall size of the kosher meat market in Montreal. According to documents provided by the JCC as part of its affidavit, Montreal's top three MK-certified kosher meat distributors totaled $37.5 million in gross sales for 2025. 

An old practice persists

One of the challenges is there may be a perception that JCC is freezing out competitors because it subscribes to a religious law called Sh’chutei Chutz. 

Sh'chutei Chutz is grounded in Jewish law where a community maintains a closed market. Poupko says it's a relic from small villages in Eastern Europe when meat from outside the community was banned to protect local butchers, who played multiple roles in the community such as prayer leaders and mohalim.

While other Jewish communities have dropped the law as a guiding principle, the JCC has held on to what critics now call an outdated standard.

“The fact that there is not significant competition in Montreal is a significant contributing factor to the cost. There's no question,” Poupko says. 

But Nataf argues the law is used to make sure traditions and standards are maintained in Montreal.

“I'm not saying it's very popular, but it's still around,” he said. 

He argues that the JCC’s interpretation of Sh'chutei Chutz is quite lenient, in part because MK Kosher does certify beef from overseas.

Aleph Meats, owned by Mendy Boyarsky, gets KSR beef from South America, often making it more affordable. 

CBC’s investigation found ground beef, for example, was between 18 per cent to 37 per cent cheaper at Aleph Meats than MK Kosher certified products at the locations that were price checked.  

Montreal’s Jewish Community divided over the case

Krane, Boyarsky's lawyer, says he’s confident the Competition Tribunal will agree to hear the case. Then the real work will begin.  

“We have to show there's been a practice of exclusivity. And then we have to show that that practice has resulted in higher prices or less choice for consumers,” Krane says. 

Nataf, the JCC spokesperson, doesn't think the lawsuit should move forward.

Typically issues within the Jewish community are handled internally by the Rabbinical Tribunal of Montreal (Beth Din) — which operates under the JCC — rather than being fought out in court.

“I don't think it's the place of tribunals to interfere in kosher certification and generally religious beliefs and discussions,” said Nataf.  

But since the Beth Din is also part of the JCC, Boyarsky says he had no choice but to take this route.

“They’re the prosecutor, they’re the judge and they’re the jury. They get to decide who can sell what, who can bring it in, they control everything across the board,” he said. 

Bovarsky added that he's personally putting a lot on the line.

“There's a possibility that I won't be able to go into the synagogue, or I'll be thrown out of the community," he said. 

“But if we win … the community will be the major beneficiary.”