(PHOTOS IN EXTENDED ARTICLE)
Sliced packaged breads manufactured by some of Israel’s largest bakeries, were frozen, sold to a non-Jew and sold after Pesach. Consumers insist in most cases, there was no indication the breads were sold before Yomtov.
The Yediot Achronot report of Monday, 24 Nissan is less concerned with the selling of the breads to a non-Jew than it is with consumers paying full price for defrosted expired bread, but adds in most cases, the stores did not display signs informing consumers the breads were not freshly baked after Pesach as most believe to be the case. The bags were marked as “Sold as chametz” but consumers did not look for such an indication, since it never existed in past years.
Consumers however noticed in some cases their bread was damp or partially frozen, leading to suspicions. Breads were sold in major stores including ShuferSal Deal, Yanot Bitan, and Rami Levy. The breads were from a number of bakeries including Tekuma (made by Deganit Ein Bar) and Tuv Taam (made by Angel’s ).
Angel’s Nir Ben-Yehuda told Yediot this is the first time in 15 years that frozen breads were sold, and the appropriate lessons are being learned from the ordeal. He added it is simply impossible to supply fresh bread to the millions of clients and that the bakery’s four plants work round-the-clock to manufacture bread and also to properly mark bags “solider as chametz for Pesach” as was the case.
ShuferSal explains it does not defrost and sell breads and the freezing and defrosting was done by the bakeries, not the supermarket.
(Jerusalem Kosher News for YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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18 Responses
Some rabbonim allow it, and even dobit in their own homes.
Yediot Acharonot shouldn’t be the ones reporting on religious news
What’s the news here? There’s no evidence that they didn’t sell before Yom Tov. Is it just a health/grossness thing?
It has been reported that a lakewood store(s) had done the same exact thing.
Ive heard that meats through out the year are sold as fresh without any indication of it being previously frozen. (A definite health hazard besides the outright g’naiva involved.
And if they instead sold the flour, which is chometz, and then used it to bake the bread after pesach, what’s the difference halachically?
make a point
April 10, 2018 8:48 am at 8:48 am
Some rabbonim allow it, and even dobit in their own homes.
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Some rabbanim allow cholov stam and pas palter and even do it in thier own home.
Whats your point exactly?
Rebbe yid very simple. Some people don’t want to rely on מכירת חמץ for chametz gamur. If the מכירה was on flour then it’s not חמץ גמור. Show that you know a little something. Please
Hey REB YID,
Since when is plain Flour Chametz?
make a point:
April 10, 2018 8:48 am at 8:48 am
Some rabbonim allow it, and even do it in their own homes……
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Some rabbanim allow cholov stam and pas palter and even do it in thier own home.
Whats your point exactly?
In a Brooklyn bakery, I was told years ago that they freeze prepared dough before Pesach which then is baked Motzei Pesach. Bakery worker said “You think we can bake 20,000 loaves bread in 8 hours? Of course not!”
Buyers are being sold bread from chometz that was sold.
And pizza shops do same.
Rebbe Yid;
The Yediot was not reporting it as a Halachic issue. As mentioned it was concerned with consumers paying full price for defrosted expired bread.
Halachically there is no difference. The whole “don’t sell real chometz” thing has no halachic basis, it’s just another of the strange chumros that different communities have, just like gebrochts or not eating fish or garlic or whatever. Even if you personally have this minhog you can still buy after Pesach from someone who doesn’t, because he acted legitimately. Chometz she’ovar olov haPesach is a penalty, so it only applies if someone did something wrong.
The difference is in quality. Some bakeries freeze dough before Pesach and bake it after, and there’s no reason to disclose that. But if the baked bread has been frozen and thawed the customer should be informed. Still, both labels shown DO inform the customer; if he didn’t notice it that’s his problem. It’s not as if it’s actually unhealthy, it just may not taste the best.
Actually all Rabbonim allow it,doesn’t every grocery store that has hundreds of thousands dollars worth of CHAMETZ like cereal noodles spaghetti etc.etc.sell it to a non jew ?, the sheer ignorance and foolishness displayed by commentators on this site and other heimishe sites is just mind boggling
If they are labeled as indicated in the photos, I don’t really see the problem. There is no deception here. People need to pay attention to what they buy and look at the labels. If in previous years stores guaranteed everything was baked after Pesach and this year not, then I agree they should have posted signs to that effect since that’s what people are used to.
Bleached flour is actual chometz.
But some are machmir that the chometz they buy should be baked after Pesach, and flour doesn’t fall into the wrong category.
People are machmir not to sell there food to a guy but to buy from a store that would have a big hefsed otherwise there is no rov that says not to buy it
” Some people don’t want to rely on מכירת חמץ for chametz gamur”
“”The whole “don’t sell real chometz” thing has no halachic basis, it’s just another of the strange chumros that different communities have”
Some commentators are do not realize the MAJOR difference –
When I am not selling MY chametz gamur I am machmir (i.e. fearing that the Mechira is not effective etc) because you are dealing with a ‘D’Oraiso’ of possessing Chametz in YOUR reshus, whereas, buying from someone else who sold his chametz, you are only dealing with a Rabonon – not a biblical issue, hence there is no point to really be machmir, unless you are a Ba’al Nefesh, or have such mesorah.
Also, the main tikun of selling chametz was designed mainly for the business owners not have a loss.
We as private owners sell our chametz for other reasons.
Aside from the fact that just about everyone agrees is totally consistent with Halacha, assuming there was a proper mechira chometz to a goy before yom tov, there is a separate issue of yidden having to take more responsibility over their purchases, read labels and ask questions. This notion of a halaachic “nanny state” where they are treated like some naïve, simple-minded sheeplach who cannot make an informed decision is totally unwarranted.
“Bleached flour is actual chometz.”
Actually, it is only Safek Chametz which we treat as Chametz i.e. that needs to be sold/do not keep etc. but regarding the above it is NOT chametz Gomer and thus, even if you are machmir on other sold chometz – you do not have to be machmir on sold flour.