All necessary preparations for the baking of hand matzos have
been completed in the Yad Binyomin matzo factory, and the
actual baking will begin soon. The rabbonim of the Badatz
Shearis Yisroel, HaRav Tzvi Friedman and HaRav Arye Halevi
Dunner, visited the bakery and personally witnessed its
strict adherence to halachic guidelines. They praised the
bakery directors for their meticulous observance of all the
special stringencies which make it worthy to merit the
outstanding hechsher of the Badatz of Shearis
Yisroel.
The rabbonim conducted a scrupulous inspection of the new,
modern mill, recently purchased in Holland. What makes the
new machine so unique is that the grinding takes place at a
very low temperature, thereby preventing the caking of the
flour at the beginning of the grinding process. This, the
rabbonim noted, is an important breakthrough.
A number of months ago, hand grinding was begun by a group of
shomrei Torah workers. At the same time, the grinding
of the wheat in machine mills also began. The entire process
is personally supervised by HaRav Dovid Koenigsbuch, a
talmid chochom and yirei Shomayim who is an
expert in this field. Prior to the grinding the machine was
thoroughly dismantled, cleaned and purged, and the milling
stones were gouged according to halocho.
Significant improvements were implemented this year with the
usage of the new mill. The machine is monitored by computers,
with constant feedback on the grinding process. The quality
of the grinding is very high. The sifting process has also
undergone improvements, and the sifted flour is stored in a
special room for three days to cool, as required by
halocho.
Members of other kashrus committees also observed the
special stringencies maintained during the harvesting
process, including the gaavad of Shearis Yisroel,
HaRav Chaim Shaul Karelitz; the ravad of Kedassia in
London, HaRav Yosef Tzvi Halevi Dunner; members of the Badatz
Shearis Yisroel, HaRav Tzvi Friedman and HaRav Arye Halevi
Dunner, and the moreh tzedek of the chareidi community
of Ofakim, HaRav Y. Chezner.
This year, a Torah-observant combine driver was hired. This
was in line with guidelines set by HaRav Yosef Sholom
Eliashiv stating that the combine driver performing the
harvesting, fertilizing, and sowing, should have
kavono that all of his efforts are lesheim
mitzvo.
In light of this year's special hiddurim in the
grinding process, other kashrus committees asked the
Yad Binyomin bakery to grind the flour they need for the
baking of their matzos, and last week a large supply was
prepared. On the 15 of Teves the bakery directors set out
under the supervision of the kashrus inspector to
perform the first drawing of mayim shelanu. Those
present at the occasion were imbued with the joy of the
mitzvah and a feeling of kedusha. The large water vats
were cleaned, and then the water-drawing system from the well
near the Chofetz Chaim kibbutz was set into motion.
Matzo baking in Yad Binyomin will begin soon, after all
preparations have been completed. An added benefit of the
costly well-planned improvements is a more-esthetic, worker-
friendly bakery.
As always, this year too, special hiddurim and
stringencies which with which no other bakery can compete
have been instituted by Yad Binyomin. The rabbonim of the
Badatz Shearis Yisroel who visited the bakery examined all of
its fine points -- even the most minute -- in order to enable
the bnei Torah community which is meticulous in its
kashrus observance to receive hand as well as machine
matzos of the highest possible kashrus standards.
