The National Center of Shmitta Observant Farmers Ltd. is next
to the Moshav Kommemiyus shul, in the home of the
Center's founder and former rav of Kommemiyus, HaRav Binyomin
Mendelsohn zt"l. Coordinators from all parts of the
country took part in a meeting held a few weeks ago in the
Center.
Since rosh chodesh Nisan, when the Center held its
first meeting, its personnel have met with, as well as
registered, hundreds of farmers, convincing many of the
importance of the mitzvah of shmitta -- many for the
first time. Center Director Reb Yosef Yoskowitz said that in
the course of his work he discovered that a particular
settlement had been skipped over during the previous
shmitta, and asked that this not reoccur.
He noted that the list of agricultural settlements to be
given to each coordinator will include notations citing
whether the settlement has a positive attitude towards
religion. He added that instead of using the term,
"chiloni" when describing a particular settlement, the
word "klali" (meaning "general") be used.
The teshuva movement has not passed the agricultural
settlements by and there are, boruch Hashem, many new
potential shmitta observers. Perhaps this is why the
Center's first meeting was also attended by representatives
of organizations involved in spreading Yiddishkeit to
these settlements.
Rabbi Yosef Guttman, a Center activist, claims that since
every ba'al teshuva is connected to some communal
network, he may be easily located. He suggested that three
meetings be held for teshuva activists: in the south,
in the north and in the center of the country. Since many
baalei teshuva have recently joined the ranks of
shmitta observers, the National Center is holding
meetings for the first time in many new areas, including the
center of the country. He also reported that the whole
population of one particular settlement has done
teshuva.
The Center decided to conduct meetings and publicity
campaigns in the shmitta year because, as the director
says, "Everything today is done with publicity."
He suggests that each individual farmer be approached on a
personal basis, noting that the Center does not routinely
approach secular Jews because of their typically negative
reactions. Through personal letters, however, he tries to
approach each farmer in a positive way. One of the
coordinators tells of a farmer who showed him the Center's
certificate of honor from a previous shmitta on his
wall.
Each individual meeting will attempt to focus on the needs of
the particular settlement. Rabbi Chaim Dagan, active in the
Center in two previous shmitta years, said that one
can sense the direction a settlement will take immediately
following a meeting. In the end, financial support does not
persuade farmers to keep shmitta; rather, it is the
ideal of shmitta observance.
Perhaps a bit late, the Center is fighting the general
heter mechiroh sponsored by the State which has
already been issued. One of the coordinators revealed that
someone approached every settlement in the country with a
copy of the heter, asking for the farmers' signatures.
At the meeting, Rabbi Roshgold said with a smile mixed with
sadness: "Later on they will ask if they can withdraw their
signatures."
Today, there are more than 400 agricultural settlements in
the country. There is a large map of Eretz Yisroel on
the Center's wall, showing the division of the country into
registration areas. The coordinators are all veteran Torah-
observant farmers.
"The Center's financial support is not even as much as a
farmer would earn in a drought year," Rabbi Roshgold says. As
loyal guardians of shmitta, the veteran Torah-
observant farmers are best suited to convince farmers to
observe shmitta without either compromises or
heteirim.
Rabbi Yoskowitz discusses his "ignorance" and surprise as a
city dweller: "At the previous meeting, I saw who the farmers
really are. I watched as a "man of the land" in the fullest
sense of the word recited bircas hamozone word for
word."
Rabbi Yoskowitz then said that now he felt he began to
understand the meaning of the term "giborei koach" and
what it means to let the land lie fallow for a year. He says
that the public must know that its consumption patterns have
to change somewhat during shmitta, and that if the
chareidi community really wants to help farmers keep
shmitta, it should buy the produce of shmitta
observant farmers, even though it has kedushas
shevi'is.
Close Down for 2 Years!
How are the coordinators able to ask a Jew to close his
business for nearly two years? More exactly -- as the
southern region coordinator, Reb Eliyahu Yosef Chai explains -
- for a year and eight months? What problems do registrars
encounter? What solutions do farmers hope to hear? Who is
today's farmer? What are his concerns?
Rabbi Ovadia Levi, a farmer from Peduyim for whom this is the
third shmitta as an adult, says, "On principle,
farmers expect full support. Fourteen years ago we reached a
very high number of shmitta observers but today, many
more want to join. They see the siyata deShmaya, the
truth in this approach and the blessing."
In his attempts to convince farmers to observe
shmitta, Reb Ovadia cites amazing cases of success.
However, he says, "It is never possible to fully compensate a
farmer. Among other things, due to the expensive equipment
used in today's agriculture technology, the small farmer has
nearly vanished from the map. Most agriculture is based on
large holders of thousands of dunams including leased lands,
in addition to the costly equipment without which modern
agriculture could not survive."
Today's New Difficulties
Farmer R' Nissim Bahri was present at the rosh chodesh
meeting. Reb Nissim farms 3000 dunams, most of which he rents
from ex- farmers. In addition to rent (which he must pay
whether he plants or not) he must cover financing and
maintenance costs for his expensive equipment. In the past,
agricultural equipment was inexpensive and did not require
such an enormous investment. Today's farmer, however, must
continue to pay for maintenance of expensive equipment even
if it remains unused for a year, as well as paying leasing
fees and interest (with a heter iskoh).
In the past when a farmer did not work on shmitta it
was only his only own lands that were involved, but today he
typically must stop working the thousands of dunams he has
leased. If he will not pay rent for the shmitta year,
the landowners will simply lease the lands to other farmers
who work their fields based on the heter mechiroh or
even without it. Moreover, this would harm the livelihood of
farmers like Reb Nissim even during the next six years
between this shmitta and the next.
In addition, the productivity of a unit of land has, with the
help of Hashem, doubled and even tripled, even in the recent
past, compared to other shmittas. As a result, the
corresponding cost of not working the land (both in terms of
profits foregone and in terms of the investment necessary to
produce the increased yields) during shmitta has
commensurately increased.
In addition, in the past a farmer's resolve to observe
shmitta fully as commanded by the Torah was a decision
relevant only to his immediate family. But today the families
of the owners of the land and of the workers in his employ
are dependent upon him. If he fails to pay them during
shmitta they might quit.
"I hereby declare," Bahri says, "that I very much want to
keep shmitta according to halocho as I have in
the past. But this time I have much greater misgivings. I am
prepared to forego all of my profits during the
shmitta year, however large they might have been.
However I am confused, and don't know what to do. Should I
cancel my leasing contract for the year, thereby endangering
continuation of the lease? It is also quite possible that in
the end, these lands will in any case be worked on
shmitta, if not by me, then by others. These, along
with numerous other questions race through my mind."
Rabbi Yehuda Feiner of Talmei Eliyahu, who is also a veteran
coordinator, adds that if no practical solution is found for
commendable farmers like Bahri, difficulties in implementing
the mitzvah of shmitta are liable to ensue.
Reb Naftali Tovim, who has been with the Center for three
shmitta years, notes that some farmers tell him that
what he proposes is tantamount to financial suicide. "In
addition to the demands of shmitta, the Center cannot
even guarantee that the chareidi community will purchase our
produce," they say. Only if the Center guarantees this, some
farmers say, can they permit themselves to observe
shmitta.
The Center and the Fund
The National Center for Shmitta Observant Farmers is the
executive arm of the Keren Shevi'is fund which solicits
donations for the support of agricultural observance during
shmitta year. Among its functions are the location of
potential shmitta observant farmers every seven years,
which it does by careful mapping of the country, by sending
registrars to the settlements and by convincing farmers to
sign an undertaking not to work their land in exchange for a
promise of support by the Fund.
This division of labor between the Fund and the Center has
been quite successful, enabling efficient management of
public contributions. Work begins as early as possible, of
course. Note: Our community is the "contributing arm" of the
Keren Hashevi'is. Without us, the Fund cannot fill its sacred
calling.
Rabbi Roshgold notes sadly that the Center cannot turn to the
public at the end of the shmitta year to begin
collecting for six years ahead, because the response then is
exceedingly modest. The community, he explains, wakes up
relatively late: only a few months prior to the beginning of
the shmitta year.
The Shmitta Fund functions in conjunction with the Ministry
of Agriculture, which is also preparing for shmitta by
granting some support to shmitta observant farmers,
among other things. The Agriculture Ministry receives lists
of Fund-endorsed farmers and uses them.
At the meeting, Rabbi Yosef Guttman described the government
criteria for the previous shmitta year. Although the
plan is good as far as it goes, it did not offer even a
partial solution for farmers who cultivate more than two
plots of land. A farmer who has more than two units of land
requires the support of the Fund: 40-80 dunams in the north,
and between 60-120 in the south are considered two plots. A
farmer whose name does not appear on the various lists,
and/or who grows more than his permissible quota, is
ineligible for support.
Consequently, nearly 50% of the farmers are ineligible for
support according to these criteria.
The owners of lands that are leased also have interests in
shmitta, since they must discontinue their leasing in
order to fulfill the mitzvah of shmitta. At least 30%
of those who own land, lease their land today. The Fund
regards them as farmers; the Agriculture Ministry does
not.
Thus your contributions and ours' cover the difference, help
those who do not meet the criteria, and pay for staff
salaries as well as the costs of various publications. The
farmers, on their part, do not remain idle during the year.
The National Center for Shmitta Observant Farmers offers them
a study framework with special kollelim for shmitta
observant farmers.
The Agriculture Ministry publishes a special booklet for
shmitta observant farmers and uses professional
guides. During the shmitta year itself, coordinators
serve as supervisors, ensuring that the lands in their region
are indeed lying fallow. They file ongoing reports with the
Keren Hashevi'is and the Agricultural Ministry.
Orchards
Orchards of fruit trees are another story. Rabbi Eliyahu
Yosef Chai of Yesod Hamaaleh, coordinator of the northern
region -- which is blessed with orchards and fruit trees,
unlike the south, where mostly vegetables and pasture crops
are grown -- stressed the need to find a solution at the
beginning of the year for the agricultural produce which has
the status of kedushas shevi'is within the framework
of the Otzar Beis Din.
This is because, for reasons of convenience, people prefer to
purchase produce which does not involve kedushas
shevi'is. This, however, causes additional losses to
farmers who throughout the shmitta year serve as
shluchei beis din in attending these orchards and who
do not manage to cover their expenses. "Were the chareidi
community to buy regularly at Otzar Beis Din stores it would
make it much easier for us to convince orchard owners to
observe shmitta. Without the support of the community,
farmers do not regard shmitta observance as worth
their while; they claim, instead, that it causes them great
losses," he explains.
Dairy farmers are also beneficiaries of the Fund. The Po'el
Hamizrachi Midrach Oz settlement, for example, normally
plants 5000 dunams of hay, 3000 of which is grown for cattle
fodder. If its farmers do not work their lands during
shmitta, what will the cows eat? Even if sowing takes
place before shmitta and the hay is cut after the
rains (according to halocho) and stored for the year,
who will finance this?
Center coordinator, Rabbi David Malka of Moshav Gefen,
stressed that we must guarantee that subsidies allocated by
the Center to these giborei koach for their livelihood
will be distributed throughout the entire shmitta
year, as in the past, until its end -- and, most importantly,
be distributed on time. However, at the meeting, it was
related that the Agriculture Ministry has yet to establish
clear-cut criteria for distribution of the monies.
The Keren Hashevi'is promises to participate financially in
covering losses and in overall support, but all it can give
in the meantime is. . . a rubber check with no money in the
bank. The conclusion: greater publicity and more
information.
"For whose sake are we working?" Rabbi Roshgold asks, and
answers, "Our right to live in Eretz Yisroel is
dependent upon the observance on the mitzvah of shmitta.
