Fruit Source
Anonymous@actcom.co.il asked:
Where do Bedatz Eda Chareidis stores obtain their produce in the sh’mittah year?
Firstly,
these stores operate according to Minhag
Yerushalayim, which treats produce grown by non-Jews on non-Jewish
owned land in Eretz Yisroel as not
having kedushas shevi’is.
Furthermore, the Bedatz does not
permit any produce which (according to their opinion) has kedushas
shevi’is to enter these stores as a matter of principle. Therefore,
such stores will sell (a) sixth year produce (b) produce grown by non-Jews in Eretz
Yisroel and (c) produce obtained from outside the halachic borders of
Eretz Yisroel. Not only does this
include potatoes from Holland, but also fruit and vegetables from parts of the Aravah
which are halachically outside Eretz Yisroel.
Note that there is a difference of opinion as to where the southern border of Eretz
Yisroel runs. The Chazon
Ish held that only south of the 30th parallel could
definitely be viewed as Chutz l’Oretz.
The Eda Chareidis follows a more
lenient opinion, which places the border further north.
