Beracha Rishona - Change in Location

Q. While chewing gum or sucking candy, I stepped outside my house. In a previous halacha we noted that after a shinui makom (change in location), a new beracha must be recited. Must I say a new beracha every time I walk in and out of the house with candy or gum in my mouth?

A. Rav Moshe Feinstein zt”l (Igros Moshe OC 2:57) writes that although it is true that if one recited a beracha in their house and then stepped outside, a new beracha must be recited before continuing to eat, however the food that is already in one’s mouth does not require a new beracha. This is because the original beracha is effective for food that is already in one’s mouth, irrespective of location. Furthermore, if a person made a beracha on a candy and went outside, a new beracha is not recited on a second candy if it was put in the mouth “toch k’dei dibur” (within 2 seconds) of finishing the first candy because it is treated as one extended act of eating. Similarly, if one is eating from a bag of popcorn, and walks outside, a new beracha must be said on the popcorn, unless the person continuously munches on popcorn without a 2 second break.

____________________________________________________

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.