Otzar Beis Din - Definition

Q. I saw boxes of esrogim marked “otzar beis din.” What does this mean?

A. Otzar beis din (lit., a warehouse of the court) is an arrangement which allows the harvesting and distribution of fruit during a year of shemita. This year is a shemita year, and many esrogim will be marked “Otzar Beis Din”.

How does otzar beis din work? Fruit that was grown in Eretz Yisroel during a shemitah year are hefker (ownerless). Anyone may pick shemita fruit for their own use, but the fruit has kedushas sheviis (the sanctity of shemitah). Shemitah fruit may not be discarded unless it has rotted, and it is forbidden to do “sechora” (regular business dealings) with them. If one has extra fruit that was not consumed, they may be sold, but the money received for that fruit acquires the kedushah of sheviis as well (i.e. leftovers cannot be discarded, unless they have rotted). A Jewish court may hire workers to gather shemita fruit to be distributed at cost to the masses. The workers who gather, pack, deliver or arrange the disbursement of these fruits are entitled to compensation. The purchasers are charged for labor but do not pay for the actual fruit. Because the fruit is not purchased, the money received by the seller does not become kodesh. If one buys an esrog through otzar beis din, the fruit is kodesh, and must be treated appropriately.

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The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.