                                    ‘Today’s Pinned News’
Join our WhatsApp groupSubscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
New York – Like the other issues that have confronted the Jewish world over the last few years, as the distractions of summer approach, the strawberry issue will dissolve amid the haze and humidity of July and August.
Interestingly enough, though, there seems to be a greater debate evolving from the strawberry issue than on the surface few could ever have imagined. And that is whether a store owner—whether it’s a bakery, a grocery store, or a fruit store—which is under the supervision of a local kashrus organization—can choose not to supply the public with something like strawberries because the individual entrepreneur desires to be more stringent in the kashrus that he or she dispenses than the organization overseeing the kosher certification of the businesses.
In other words, can a store be forced to sell strawberries to the public in light of current events if the store owner just doesn’t feel like it? If the people demand strawberries, or any other like product that is endorsed by the kosher agency, but the store management decides to supersede that decision based on their own personal kashrus standard, should they be penalized for doing that? The real divide on issues like this comes down to the nature of stringencies that people like to adopt for themselves. That’s all fine and good, but what about when those personal stringencies impact on others—in this case, the public at large? [5townsjewishtimes]
no one can be forced to sell something that he does not want to sell.
if as a furniture store owner i would choose to not sell anything with blue upholstery i would be entitled to. if it impacts on my business then that is my problem.
at the end of the day, a consumer who wants to buy strawberries must go to a store that sells strawberries. if for whatever reason their regular grocer no longer stocks them, or for the same reason has sold out, then go somewhere else.
it is even more acceptable if there is a principle involved in my opinion.
in my local store there is a notice hanging up that informs customers that all products stocked that have no certification are approved by one of two Kashrus authorities (I am not divulging which but their names are noted in store). any products carrying a hechsher though it is up to the consumer to decide whether or not that particular authority is acceptable to him.
WE MUST FORCE ALL STORES TO CARRY ALL PRODUCTS.
NO ONE HAS RESHUS TO STOP THE PUBLIC.
ALL STORES ARE MECHYIV TO CARRY WHATEVER PEOPLE WANT TO BUY.
LAW ENFORCEMENT SHOULD ENFORCE THIS.
i think the pharmacys that have to sell “contraceptives or the emergency pill regardless of their religious belief.” should also have to sell the strawberries maybe bug infested strawbs are like a laxative. who knows NOT ALL ISSUREI MAACHAL ARE ISUREI HANA’AH
However nobody mentioned anything about mlifnei iver with bugsso does the storekeeper have to do more than he would likely assume a kosher consumer should know on his own? If the grocer wants to be nice let him offer strawberries with a sign how to prepare them, but if the oylam aint buying for sure the grocer aint stocking and selling….
Stores can really sell whatever they want, no one is forcing you to buy it. When you go into a store you can decide for yourself if you wanto to eat that product. I don’t see why a store has to stop selling it, it’s up to you to do what you think is right.I was in an ice cream store and wanted a fruit shake, when I asked the guy which strawberries he sells, he showed me the pack and it was my choice if I was interested in buying or not.
Whoever gives the hechsher to the store should be the determiner of what is OK or OU to sell?
I think stores should be forced to sell strawberrys, otherwise you might as well cancel shalosh suedos.
Strictly nonsense !!!
I wonder who wrote the article,
He was probably looking for strawberries & couldn’t find them
so he is checking if he could file a lawsuit on a brother ?
or plain an idiot.
Anon 3:57PM – provided the bugs have a hechsher.
i think the pharmacys that have to sell “contraceptives or the emergency pill regardless of their religious belief.” should also have to sell the strawberries maybe bug infested strawbs are like a laxative. who knows
anon 2:58PM
according to the Oruch Hashilchan siman 100 and shut ksav sofer chelek yorei deiah siman 63, you should have no problem eating strawberies after you washed, checked them ‘ahd yodoi mehgahas’
BUT ask your local orthodox rabbi
for a psak and do like he tells you.
I do see a reason for the DA getting involved. I see unfair business practices, strong arming by suppliers.
anyways,
what is the Halacha regarding strawberries? if its washed well can we eat it? whats with the frozen ones?
vi azoi paskent men?
This is total nonsense. A store owner can sell or not sell whatever he chooses. Maybe he chooses not to sell strawberries because they have a short shelf life! No kashruth organization can force anyone to sell a certain product. That would be organized crime and illegal
Lets get one thing straight.
Strawberries are NOT traif, Romaine lettuce is NOT treif. Regular Lettuce is NOT traif. There are halachos on how one must approach these items. If one exerts the effort and washes them properly, he can buy the old fashioned heads of lettuce. That is why there is a Shulchan Aruch, hilchos tolaim. Learn the halachos, know them well and do what is correct al pi halacha.
Anonymous 12:54 PM
the answer to your first wuestion is
yoh…interen tish..
Everything must be going well in the 5 towns for this to be worthy of publication. Things must have really calmed down since the school board elections.
Don’t they realize if most customers won’t buy a perishable product the grocers won’t bother carrying it?
Do the seforim stores in Williamsburg have to sell Rav Kooks seforim?
Does Mosad Harav have to publish Sefer Vayoel Moshe?
That depends on whether a store owner takes religion into account when doing business.
The TRUMP saying goes “Its not personal its Business”.
If you take your question one step further , (for example purposes only)will a store owner carry an item with an OK hechsher when the store owner himself will only eat an OU hechser?
Usually the consumer makes the decision as to what he or she will buy.
But does the store owner want to entice the consumer by carrying the product?
this is such a farse, I know that I don’t want to sell Strawberries, just in-case people don’t check them properly. I wouldn’t want it to be on my head, or on theirs.
This is not a news story!!!
can you force me to sell any item? forget about religious belief, how about thousands of items that one store might have and another doesent.
According to New York state law, a pharmacy must sell contraceptives or the emergency pill regardless of their religious belief. They don’t have to display it, but when asked they must sell it, or arrange delivery from another pharmacy.
I don’t think there is a similar law about strawberries.
come on!!!!!
He can do whatever he wants. If he doesn’t mind loosing customers so be it.
The guy asking this question has a problem with someone being FRUM……
Let’s just get along & move along……
anon 11:30AM
you are right. he DOES have a different issue.
look at the origin of the article…v’hameivin yuvin..
A store owner can sell whatever he pleases… can you force a store to sell cholov stam or pas akum…. this is the single most absurd news brief i have ever seen
Who exactly would force the store? Since when does a store have a chiyuv to sell strawberries?
why not?
if i’m a store owner,
can you force me to sell any item that you desire?
you have the option to buy the item at a merchant accross the street.
if the merchant feels that its not right to eat strawberries based on the controversy that’s ongoing now, he has every right to remove it from his shelf.
I shop at Goldberg’s on 18th Ave and he has a sign up next to the produce that he is not selling strawberries at the present time.
if someone davka wants, he can go to shoprite are King tomatoe on 20th Ave.
for what ever reason
Any store owner can do whatever it is they want. If they choose to risk losing customer’s that is their right. The writer of this article obviously has a different issue, and that is, can one be frummer than strictly halacha.