Articles that appeared exclusively in this edition of
Yated Ne'eman in parshas Shofetim and Ki
Sovo, Elul, 5761, explained that some Israeli products
sold in the United States under certification from the Union
of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America (OU) relied on
various forms of a hetter mechirah in varying degrees.
Although the procedures followed were considerably different
from those followed by the Israeli Chief Rabbinate,
nonetheless, the gedolei haposkim in Eretz Yisroel said
that the products are still subject to the laws of
kedushas Shevi'is and issur sefichin where
applicable, as explained below.
Since the appearance of those articles, there have been
numerous requests from bnei Torah in America for
information to clarify where those heter mechirah
products from Israel marketed under the OU hechsher are
to be found.
Yated has been in contact with both the rabbinical
leadership of the OU kashrus organization and with the
gedolei haposkim in Israel to clarify the
halachic and technical details.
The following information is available as of now:
The products that are in question are parsley, dill and
cilantro that were grown at Kibbutz Sedeh Eliahu in the Beit
She'an Valley. These raw spice materials were exported from
Israel to the U.S. These products are, in turn, used in
hundreds, or even thousands, of other products.
The OU took special measures in order to try to satisfy
halachic standards for shmittah and arranged for a
private sale of the lands of Kibbutz Sedeh Eliahu. Fields
were sold individually, and with the permission of the Israel
Land Administration (Minhal Mekarke'ei Yisrael). The
cultivation was also done under halachic guidelines. Most of
the produce was actually planted in the sixth year and only
harvested in the seventh year.
After carefully investigating the steps which the OU took,
the gedolei haposkim are of the opinion that since
there was no actual transfer of the land, and there was no
real gemiras daas, the sale was not effective. Thus the
produce that was both grown and harvested during
Shevi'is is prohibited as sefichin and the
produce grown in the sixth year and only harvested in the
seventh year is still subject to all laws of kedushas
shevi'is.
It should be noted that the OU made efforts to try to satisfy
the strictest requirements for shmittah. However, they
did not consult with the gedolei haposkim of Eretz
Yisroel or even with all the poskim that the OU
generally consults. Accordingly, a bedi'eved situation
was created whereby the Sedeh Eliahu produce has by now
already been marketed in America. It should also be noted
that the OU is cooperating with Yated in order to
clarify the situation for those who want to follow the ruling
of the gedolei haposkim.
According to the OU, even though the parsley imported to the
U.S. from Israel makes up a significant portion of the total
parsley imports to the U.S., the local U.S. production is
more than 70 times the total amount of all the imported
parsley. Also, the OU said that two-thirds of the Israeli
parsley that was imported was planted during the sixth year
and only harvested in the seventh year, which is an issue of
kedushas shevi'is and not prohibited sefichin.
The amounts of dill and cilantro that were imported were very
small. According to the Beis Medrash Govoha Lehalochoh
Behisyashvus Hachaklo'is the time of bi'ur for parsley
has started.
Now it is almost impossible to trace the whereabouts of the
imported products and the OU feels that bedi'eved, even
those who want to be makpid for the ruling of the
gedolei haposkim can apply the rule of holchim achar
horove in this case.
The OU suggested that checking the labels for a listing of
the problematic products would enable one to determine which
had them, but a short survey conducted by the Yated
found that this is unreliable since some labels merely
list "spices" and there is no easy way to know if that
includes the products in question. According to the
gedolei haposkim the imported spices are not
boteil in any of the mixtures since they are added to
give taste.
The advice of the gedolei haposkim at this time is that
any product with a chashash should not be used until at
least Chanukah. (This is based on the Rambam, Shevi'is,
4:6.)
Yated is continuing to clarify this matter with the
gedolei haposkim and the OU, and will report on all
future developments. The cooperation of the OU on this matter
is appreciated and we hope that those who want to follow the
rulings of the gedolei haposkim will be able to do so.
We hope that the OU will supply us with a generic list of all
problematic products.
It should be noted that the questionable products may be in
soups, pizza, Sephardic dishes and products that contain
spices. According to the OU, McCormick spices do not contain
any Israeli products.
