OU kosher symbol
The kosher symbol of OU Kosher, the Orthodox Union’s certification program: an agency has checked the product and how it was made against Jewish dietary law.
How to read it
In Hebrew, kosher means fit or proper under Jewish dietary law. OU Kosher, a nonprofit program of the Orthodox Union, describes certification as a rabbinic agency checking a product’s ingredients, the facility and the production itself, so that the symbol covers both the product and the way it was made.
Also searched as: circle U, Orthodox Union kosher, OU.
Letters beside the symbol
An OU with no letter beside it marks a pareve product, one with neither meat nor dairy. OU-D marks a product that is dairy or was made on dairy equipment, and OU-P one that is kosher for Passover as well as pareve. The pareve and dairy markings page covers these letters.
In US labeling rules
For meat and poultry, the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service allows the word “kosher” only on products prepared under rabbinical supervision.
Read next
- Next in Certification marksOK kosher symbolThe kosher symbol of OK Kosher Certification: a bold letter K in a circle, marking products and eateries under its supervision.
- The same shape in AI labels and iconsAI iconAI-generated or AI-changed content. A badge with the letters AI, often in a circle or beside a word such as generated or modified, labels an image, video, sound or text as made or altered with artificial intelligence. The European Union publishes an official set of these icons.
More certification marks
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with circles or letters and numbers.
Sources
- Kosher Food: The Kosher Primer, OU Kosher, Orthodox Union
- What is Kosher? (OU Kosher), OU Kosher, Orthodox Union
- All OU Symbols Explained, Rabbi Chaim Goldberg, OU Kosher, Orthodox Union
- Meat and Poultry Labeling Terms, Food Safety and Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed September 25, 2026. How we research
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