The  Basur  IS  Asur

Chodosh and Yashan

by Ariella Svei and Meira Waisbord

            In Va’yikra, 23:14 the posuk states: “Vi’lechem vi’kali vi’karmel lo toachlu od etzem ha’yom ha’ze od haviachem at korban elokachem chukat olam l’dorotachem b’chol moshvotachem”- “You should not eat bread, or roasted kernels, or dried kernels until this very day (16^th of Nissan), until you bring the offering to your G-d, this is an eternal statute for all generations in all your dwelling places.”  The Mitzvah of Chodosh is the prohibition against eating from the “new grain crop” before the bringing of the Korban Omer on Pesach (usually that 16^th of Nissan). After the Omer has been brought, any grain that has already taken root becomes “yahsan” –old grain- and it is permissible to eat it.  Any grain that takes root after that day is forbidden as “chodosh” until tet zayin Nissan the following year. The prohibitions of chodosh apply to five types of grain: wheat, barley, rye, oats, and spelt.

            The Rambam states that the reason for the mitzvot of chodosh and yashan is that most of our food is from grains and it is therefore fitting to give a korban to Hashem for he provided us with these grains.  When we as a people recognize and remember this, we will be worthy of the food that He gives us.

            The Korban Omer is a barley offering brought in the morning on the 16^th of Nissan.  Barley is the ripest of the five grains mentioned in Nissan and is therefore able to make the other grains permissible, after it is offered.  In Yerushalayim, after the Kohanim were makriv (brought up) the barley, all grains once considered chodosh were considered yahsan and were able to be eaten.  In distant places, the “new grains” became mutar to eat after chatzot (midday) on the 16^th.  Nowadays when there is no Beit Hamikdash, Jews in Eretz Yisrael must wait the whole day to be able to eat the chodosh grains of the previous year, and for Jews Chutz La’aretz (outside of Eretz Yisrael) the chodosh does not become yashan until after the 17^th of Nissan.

            The Ramban in his sefer, Mishnah Torah, discusses that the laws of chodosh are for both men and women and that the prohibition of eating chodosh includes the consumption of “karmel”, fresh grain, “tochen”, ground grains, “rakdah”, grains that have been winnowed, or “kalah”, roasted grain.  One who is over on these halachot is chayav shalosh malkiot – gets three lashes.

            The Korban Omer does not make any seed which has been planted before the 16th of Nissan permissible; there are requirements for a crop to become yashan after tet zayin Nissan.  The grain must have become rooted for at least three days prior to Pesach, no matter if it was not cut or even if the produce had not completed its growth until after the barley was brought up to Hashem it is considered mutar and may be eaten during the year.  The Shulchan Aruch warns that farmers should be extremely careful concerning crops planted immediately before Pesach so that a crop that had not taken root for the accurate amount of time would not be falsely considered yashan and eaten.

            For almost 2000 years, these mitzvot have been forgotten, neglected, and considered foreign by observant Jews everywhere.  There are three prime reasons the practices of chodosh and yashan have ceased to exist. One, centuries have passed since the Jews have been especially involved with agriculture, two, after the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, there was no Korban Omer offered every Pesach, and three, bread was a staple of life.  In Europe, it was dangerous to the health of people to keep these laws because it was almost impossible for people to go with out bread for periods of time in order to adhere to the laws of yashan, for they would starve.

            Recently, however, the practices of chodosh and yashan have been revived and Jews all over America have started to follow the strict laws of chodosh and yashan once again.  Today, bread is not as important in the diets of Americans; in the United States there are plenty of vegetables, dairy products, and proteins to eat.  Because of modern storage techniques, “yashan flour” is also available in the United States to those who want it.  For the reasons mentioned above, Rabbis in the past few decades have begun to allow, and in some instances encourage, Jews in America to take on the practices of chodosh.  Nevertheless, they also remind a person that committing themselves to these laws is a neder (a vow) and should not be done without much consideration.

One who starts keeping chodosh might feel overwhelmed or panicked. Nowadays it less complicated then it seems. Bakeries, pizza stores and other kosher Jewish restaurants now make yashan food, which makes it a lot easier for Jews to keep this mitzvah.

            Keeping yashan requires two areas of planning: stocking up and storing food products you will need.  There are many food items that Jews would need to collect and store up on.  Some of the common items to stock up on: barley, breadcrumbs, farfel, flour, pasta, soup nuts, cereals, etc.  There are a few things one could do that will be helpful when stocking up on food items that are in the “yashan safe period”- meaning that there is no doubt to the fact that they are yashan.  The first thing to do is to figure out the number of weeks from the beginning of the chodosh season until Pesach. Then, the individual  must calculate how many products he will need that are made from the five grains and then approximate how much of that item is used per week in his household. Multiply that number by the number of weeks in the chodosh season and calculate a little extra for any special occasions like Yamim Tovim, simchot, and other parties that might occur during the chodosh season. A second thing that is very beneficial is to become involved in a “Chodosh Club”, being started in many communities, which inform people who are keeping chodosh of updates on chodosh products.  Y. Herman’s book entitled Guide to Chodosh this book shows you the manufacturer’s codes of food items in the store, so you will be able to determine if the food is yashan or chodosh. Another thing one can do is start looking for sales on food items that would probably be needed. For example, during the summer some supermarkets have great sales on cereals and pastas. It would therefore be beneficial to take advantage of this opportunity.

Once the food is brought home you need to be able to store them somewhere. Some people build a special cabinet or closet to store them in. The food put in these storage places should be put in tightly sealed containers. Flour, noodles and barley should be put in tightly sealed bags and stored in the freezers. Putting them in the freezer helps get rid of any bug problems. 

            If one realizes that they did not buy enough of some product then they should probably look on the back shelves of supermarkets. The back shelves might contain food made out of yashan instead of the new products that would be considered chodosh. The Yashan Exchange in Baltimore also might be able to help if a product that is essential cannot even be found on the back shelves of supermarkets.

            Planting times for each specific grain will also effect the level of difficulty faced when keeping chodosh.  Rye is planted during the fall and harvested during late spring and early summer making American rye flour always yashan. Spring wheat is usually added to the rye bread to give it a better consistency. Since the blending of the grains is done before the grinding of the kernels into flour, and most of the flour is from rye, the added grains have no significance (batail berov) and the new blend is mutar to ear.

            Most of the barley in the United States consumed by humans is processed into malt and then made into beer. Nearly all of the malt mixture is old barley, because old barley seems to produce better malt than new barley does. Despite this, barley is planted in April and June and harvested in August, and American barley is usually chodosh. Therefore, one must check the beer before buying it to make sure that it was not made with barley from that year.

            Oats are the second major small grains produced in the United States. Oats are planted between April and May and harvested from July to August. Therefore, most oats grown in America are considered chodosh and are a problem.

            Twenty three percent of American wheat land is spring wheat. One-third of the spring wheat is durum, which is used in spaghetti and macaroni. This wheat is planted in late spring and harvested in early summer. As seen from these dates most of spring wheat is considered chodosh until the next Pesach, and therefore, a person practicing the laws of chodosh must stock up on the products made from it before the 17^th of Nissan.

            Winter wheat is planted in the fall and harvested in late summer and early spring. Winter wheat is never chodosh because it is rooted before Pesach, and the fact that it is not harvested until after the Korban Omer makes no difference.

Although one may think they know which flour is permissible because of the planting and harvesting dates of the wheat, one should realize that spring wheat flour and fall wheat flour are mixed together, and the proportions of spring and winter wheat in an item depend on the item being made and the governments involvement in the production.  The United States government has always had a political influence on the grain-producing states. For example, Farm Storage Facilities has been building up a reserve of grain and Grain Reserve Programs control the price of the grain though farmers rotating the crops that they produce.

            There is a machloket (dispute) in the Gemara on the words “b’chol moshvotachem”- “in all your dwelling places”, in Va’yikra.  A problem has been disputed through the generations: do the regulations of chodosh and yashan apply in Chutz La’aretz, or just in Eretz Yisrael.  In Kiddushin Lemed Zayin (37), Tanna Kama says that there are only two mitzvot dealing with land that we know of halacha l’moshe mi’sinai that must also be kept in Chutz La’aretz, chodosh is not one of them.  “Ki’amar Tanna Kama…aval chodosh ba’aretz ain b’chutza la’aretz ma’i ta’ama moshav l’achar y’rusha v’yishiva mishma”. He explains “b’chol moshvotachem” as “after possession and settlement of Eretz Yisrael, in Eretz Yisrael,” and he proves his answer through the practices used in the laws of nesachim, for they also began once B’nei Yisrael had entered and conquered the land.  In Kiddushin Lamed Chet (38), R’ Alazar bar R’ Shimon says “kol mitzvah she’nitztavu yisrael…l’achar k’nisato l’yisrael aina noheget alah ba’aretz” – “any commandment in which B’nei Yisrael became obligated to after they entered the land (Eretz Yisrael) apply only in the land”.  R’ Alazar seems to side with the Tanna Kama, saying B’nei Yisrael do not have to keep the laws of chodosh outside Eretz Yisrael, because of Rashi’s commentary on the laws of chodosh where he states that during the 14 years of kivush v’chiluk (conquering and dividing of the land) chodosh was not practiced yet. 

Contrary to the latter, R’ Eliezer says “af chodosh noheg ben ba’aretz  ben ba’chutza la’aretz ma’i ta’ama moshav b’chol makom she’atem yoshvim”- these laws apply both in and outside of Eretz Yisrael because “dwelling” denotes any place in which one dwells, even outside Eretz Yisrael.  This dispute went on for ages, Sephardi Rabbis R’ Yitzchak Elfasi, the Rambam, the Rosh, and most famously, R’ Yosef Karo side with the more strict view of R’ Eliezer while Ashkenazi Rabbim R’ Moshe Isserles, better known as the Rama, and the Tosphot take the more lenient approach to this halacha because of a safek s’pheka (a double doubt) that perhaps the grain took root this year or perhaps it was rooted last year.  They say it is mutar to eat chodosh products grown Chutz La’aretz as long as you are careful with imported grains.  Most Rabbis rule as the Rama did and legislate chodosh to apply to Eretz Yisrael and its neighboring countries, because chodosh grain from Israel may be imported to the nearby countries.  Since grain from Israel is not sent to America, these Rabbis have decreed that Jews are not chiyuv (obligated) in the laws of chodosh in the United States.

            Another controversial issue concerning chodosh nowadays is if chodosh is from the produce of Jews only, or if it is for the grains grown by non-Jews as well.  In the Shulchan Aruch, R’ Yosef Karo write that chodosh applies to any grain regardless of the religion of the farmer that grows it.  R’ Yoel Sirkes, “the Bach”, says that grain crops grown in Eretz Yisrael must be yashan in order to be eaten by Jews, regardless of whether a Jew grew them or not, but Chutz La’aretz, a Jew may not eat the chodosh crop if it was grown by a Jew.  The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch writes that some say chodosh is only with the field of a Jew, but if the field belongs to a Jew and is then leased to a goy (a non-Jew), the laws of chodosh apply to his harvest.  On the same note, the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch writes “v’machmir tavo aluv b’racha”- a blessing will come upon someone who keeps the stricter opinions.

            Since there are many aspects to keeping chodosh and yashan one should make certain that they are ready to accept this mitzvah upon themselves.  If a Jew does this because of a great desire to keep the mitzvah and puts the proper effort into observing chodosh and yashan it will not be a hard task to complete. In addition, they will be reviving mitzvot that have since been disregarded and hopefully more mitzvot that have not been practiced will become part of our daily lives helping to bring about the coming of Mashiach.

Works Cited

Gemara Kiddushin: Lamed Zayin, Lamed Chet (37, 38)

Sefer Ha’chinuch: Shin Gimmel – Shin Heh  (303-305)

Rambam’s Mishna Torah - Hilchot M’achlot Asurot: Peh Yud

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch: Samech Ayin Kuf Ayin Bet

Sulchan Aruch – Yoreah De’ah: Resh Tzadih Gimmel (293)

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