For Public Knowledge: Shemitah Laws Continue in the Coming Months

While the Shemitah year of 5775 is now behind us, it appears that the commandment of Shemitah has not yet ended: The Shemitah Committee led by Rabbi Yosef Efrati is quick to warn and publicize that even in the eighth year, Shemitah sanctity still applies to some of the produce sold in markets and vegetable stores.

As part of this, Rabbi Efrati notes that for most vegetables, one must observe Shemitah prohibitions until after Chanukah, which includes observing both the prohibition of Sefichin (spontaneous growth) and the sanctity of the seventh year. This law applies even to vegetables harvested in the eighth year after Rosh Hashanah.

The Rabbi further added that Shemitah laws still apply to fruits as well, and for some, the Shemitah obligations are only beginning now. Consequently, most fruits sold until Pesach are subject to Shemitah restrictions. In the coming days, the commandment will also begin to apply to avocados and persimmons, followed later by various citrus fruits. However, the exception is the banana, which according to the late Rabbi Elyashiv's ruling in previous Shemitah years, if harvested in the eighth year, is not subject to the prohibition of Sefichin or Shemitah sanctity.

Therefore, the public should strive to purchase fruits and vegetables only from stores that observe the Shemitah commandment: non-Jewish produce, Otzar Beit Din (court storehouse), or fruits that are sacred with Shemitah sanctity, which must be treated with special holiness.