The Ariel Bakery, which has numerous branches, traces its humble beginning to the Talpiot area of Haifa, now a major bakery serving northern areas of Israel.

The kashrus supervision of Badatz Rav Rubin has announced the bakery is no longer under its supervision due to violations pertaining to chametz in some of its branches . In a “clarification” issued on at the end of last week, bakery officials report the plant and dough factory remains under the Haifa Rabbinate and they were under Rav Rubin in the past, adding before Pesach they turned to the Eida Chareidit and have been following the Eida’s kashrus instructions since Rosh Chodesh Nissan. Bakery officials insist they began probing the changeover to the Eida Chareidit a number of months ago for a number of business-related reasons.

Bakery officials do however admit a private franchise owner did indeed open his Kiryat Tivon store during Pesach, stating that the management is well-aware of the severity of his actions and in response, has terminated the agreement with that store.

At present, the Eida Chareidit has not given its stamp of approval to the bakery while Rav Rubin’s badatz has removed its supervision, leaving the bakery with a non-mehadrin supervision from the Haifa Religious Council. Some are tactfully accusing the kashrut supervisions of engaging in a turf war, a war which is claiming the bakery as a victim.

Notices are being distributed in chareidi areas to inform shoppers that the Ariel Bakery is currently no longer a mehadrin operation.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)