Portuguese cheese maker Jose Braz, one of tens of thousands of anousim ["hidden Jews"] has renewed his link to Judaism by making his unique products Portugal's first kosher cheese since 1497, when the country's Jews were expelled.
Rabbi Daniel Litvak, who serves the Jewish community in the northern city of Porto, discovered that Braz was one of the Anousim after the cheese manufacturer asked him to supervise production of the special Serra da Estrala cheese and certify it as kosher.
"I was surprised when he approached me, as his cheese sells very well all over the world, so it was obvious to me that the reason behind his decision was not to further boost sales," said Rabbi Litvak.
"When I spoke with him, I discovered that he is a descendant of Anousim, whom historians often refer to by the derogatory term Marranos, and that the reason he contacted me was his desire to renew his connection with Judaism and express his Jewish identity on the packaging of the cheese that is so closely associated with him."
Braz owns the Queijos Braz cheese factory in the Portuguese city of Covilhã. His Serra da Estrala cheese is a unique local cheese that is very well known in Portugal, as well as throughout Europe and the rest of the world. It is made from sheep and goat's milk and originates in the Serra da Estrala Mountains, Portugal's highest, at an altitude of 2,000 meters (6,560 feet) above sea level.
The granting of kosher certification is an important part of strengthening Jewish life in Portugal and bolstering the country’s Jewish community, according to Michael Freund, whose Shavei Israel organization includes Rabbi Litvak as an emissary.
There are approximately 1,000 Jews currently living in Portugal, most of whom live in Lisbon, Porto and Belmonte, according to Freund. Another 7,000 Portuguese citizens declared their religious identity to be Jewish in the most recent national census.
An estimated tens and possibly hundreds of thousands of descendants of Anousim live in Portugal and are aware of their identity and their historical connection to the Jewish people, he said. Freund noted that the results of a new scientific study published late last year indicate that approximately 20 percent of the population of Spain and Portugal, around 10 million people, are descendants of Jews.