A proposed New York City decree that would severely limit the use of coal and wood-burning ovens has raised concerns at the city’s Matza Bakery. Some have warned that the bakery could move out of the city.
By Anash.org reporter
A New York City matzah bakery has expressed concern over a proposed city rule that would reduce the use of coal and wood ovens needed for matzah baking.
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection has drafted new rules requiring traditional wood- and coal-burning ovens to have filters to cut emissions by up to 75 percent. The rule will primarily affect pizzerias in the city, but could have an even worse impact on matzah production.
To achieve the mandated 75% emission reduction, bakers will have to switch to other fuel sources or install expensive filtration systems.
The first option is a non-starter, according to people involved in the Mazza business.
“This is a long-standing religious tradition. Gas stoves don’t get as hot as coal or wood. I don’t want to,” Alter Eckstein, manager of Sathmar Broadway Matzah Bakery, told the New York Post.
And the second option could push the price of handmade shumla matzas even higher, further squeezing pockets already thinned by inflation and higher food prices.
Rising prices could also undermine efforts to distribute shmla matzah to as many Jews as possible before Pesach. Many of its matzahs come from Eretz Isroel or Ukraine, but New York City’s Matzah Bakery plays a pivotal role in it. Mivtsa likewise.
According to Chabad.org, more than £1 million of shumla matzah is distributed each year, much of it thanks to the Rebbe. Mivtsa Matsa It started in 5714.
“Rebe’s claim is that Shumla The availability of matza throughout the country was beyond words. In one notable example, he arranged for Mercos Lynjonei Chinuchi, the central educational body of the Chabad Lubavitch movement, to pay for his education in Corfu. Shumla Through Chabad’s emissary Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Hecht, who was in Chicago at the time, he promoted Mazza’s advertisement in Chicago,” they write.
Shortly after the proposed regulations were announced in New York City, an uproar broke out as pizza lovers and Jewish leaders called for the city to back down.
“I love matzah. It’s the exact opposite of what you should do,” said the Brooklyn Republican city council member. Ali Kagan. “I am completely against it. No.”
Mayor Eric Adams also took his opinion into consideration and urged a compromise path. “We don’t want to damage businesses in the city and we don’t want to damage the environment. So let’s see if we can find a way to get the solution we’re looking for,” he said. said last week.
But some of Matza’s bakeries don’t give it any chance. One matzah bakery has already spent $600,000 on a filter system in anticipation of the new regulations. Some are said to be considering moving out of the city, and the New York Post reported that one rabbi said the bakers could flee New York for a cozy place. warned. In March 2021, Shumura Matzah Bakery opened in Fort Worth, Texas. It will be the first bakery in North America outside of New York and Montreal.
As for Crown Heights, we haven’t heard anything about the plans.
Anash.org reached out to representatives of Crown Heights Matzah Bakery regarding this issue and future plans, but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
Video: Grilling matzah at Crown Heights in front of Pesach 5782
