K A S H R U T . C O M_©

The following shmitta alert is from the COR Detroit and Israeli Chief Rabbinate posted on November 10, 2015.

From COR Detroit: "BELL PEPPERS FROM ISRAEL are now being sold at local stores (Meijer, Walmart, Sam’s Club, etc.) and include Sunset brand, Field & Farm, Mor and other brands of colored peppers. Consumers should carefully check the fine print on the package, or the sticker on peppers sold loose, for the country of origin. The same brand may have a mixture of some from Israel and some from other locations, so each package or pepper should be checked. At this time it is recommended not to buy peppers from Israel, because it is unclear whether or not they present a Shemita (sefichin) problem. If already purchased, consult your Rav.
Consumers should always be careful when buying produce to check the sticker, bag label or original case for the country of origin, due to issues of Shemitah (fruit from Israel will be Shemitah product well into 2016), or of Terumos and Maaseros if it is not Shemitah product. Some additional examples of Israeli produce commonly found in the U.S. include tomatoes, carrots, citrus fruit, persimmons, pomelos, dates, and parsley."

From the Israeli Chief Rabbinate in Israel: Produce needs a marked "retail heter" to be sold post-shemita. (translated by Rabbi S. Rosenfeld)

Ed. note 1: Products from Israel bearing mainstream American heckshers are not shmitta products.

Ed. note2: We are at the period where vegetables are becoming less of a shmitta issue, but fruits are still an issue. Information on shmitta and a link to a list as to when fruits and vegetables have shmitta status is at www.kashrut.com/consumer/vegetables/#SCHMITTA.