Alpro Barista vegan "milk" coupon

 Haven't done one of these in a while!

Here's a coupon for you to use at the grocery store/supermarket!

Get 30% off your purchase of Alpro Barista REFRIGERATED products, 1 L cartons. Valid through June 30, 2026 at select supermarkets (Shufersal, Yesh, Chatzi Chinam, Rami Levy, Machsanei Hashuk, Yochenanof, Victory, Super Bareket, Shuk Ha'Ir, Stop Market, SuperTal, AM:PM)

Click here: https://lp.strauss-group.co.il/alpro/ to get the coupon to scan at checkout

Here's a screenshot of the coupon:

Grocery Savings

 If you've found your way here, chances are you're trying to figure out how to lower your grocery bill in Israel.

I'm going to try to share some helpful tips and tricks!

I live in a small town and we don't have lots of options for supermarkets. We have the following stores within walking distance of our house:

Machsanei HaShuk (not a huge one)

3 Makolets (2 are owned by the same person)

1 Fruit and Vegetable Store

(and several "Russian Makolets" I don't go to)

We have the option of driving a few minutes to a Shufersal

And we have the option of ordering groceries online from Shufersal or Rami Levy.

I've discovered that the way I spend the least money is by maximizing my ability to do small shops on the different sale days at our local stores, OR by buying from Rami Levy online once in while, especially if I can snag a free delivery deal (they have them every so often)!

Here's the thing I discovered today, when I went to Machsanei HaShuk for their Tuesday Dairy Sales (I only sometimes buy their Tuesday Meat Sales - depends if they're good enough!) - I walked thru the produce section, which I often ignore on Tuesday, knowing that Wednesday is Produce Sale Day. And you know what I discovered?

A fair number of vegetables were priced at 2.90/kilo, which is LOWER than the price they will be sold for tomorrow on Produce Sale Day!

I saw onions, sweet potatoes, eggplants, carrots, yellow peppers, and red peppers ALL for 2.90/kg! And I decided to buy them, except for the onions, as I am fairly certain that they won't be available for anywhere close to that price tomorrow or Thursday! 

Follow up: I checked the sale announcement later in the day. Tomorrow's sale prices have Carrots for 3.90/kg, Eggplant for 5.90/kg, Sweet Potatoes for 6.90/kg, and Yellow Peppers for 6.90/kg, so I'm glad I got them for 2.90! I did see some decent prices on some of the fruit I would consider buying, so if I have time for a 10 minute stop at the store tomorrow, I'll probably get some fruit that's on sale.

UPDATE: I checked on Wednesday, and the items that were 2.90 yesterday were STILL 2.90 today! I'm still glad I bought them yesterday, though, so I didn't have to carry it all home today!

I know that 2 of our local makolets (the two owned by the same person) have produce sales on Monday and Thursday. Lately I can get onions there for 1.90/kilo so I skipped the 2.90 onions, and I'm planning a quick stop at the Makolet on Thursday for their chicken sale that runs Wednesday and Thursday, onions for 1.90 if still available, and potatoes for 2.50 if still available (the sales do change from time to time, so I can't be certain what the price will be).

One of those 2 makolets also has a "produce markdown rack" where everything on the rack is 2 shekels/kg or per package. It's pretty hit or miss but I'm always happy to get bananas and apples from their for turning into muffins or apple crisp.

I checked the specialty fruit and vegetable store, and while it's not nearly as expensive as similar stores in Tel Aviv, I haven't shopped there.

Every once in a while, I'll find myself enticed to stop into Shufersal, but generally, it's pricey. They do sometimes have worthwhile sales in the produce section, though!

Anyway, what's the upshot here?

I recommend exploring your options in order to find out how you'll get the best deal on the foods you tend to buy. If you only have time for one grocery shop a week, you're going to want to figure out which one comes out cheapest overall for your typical list, but I guarantee it won't be cheapest for every item on your list. If you have time for a few small shopping trips, try to take advantage of sales and specials and plan which store is the place to buy what!

So the upshot here is: I buy fruits and vegetables from Machsanei HaShuk and the makolets, I buy dairy sales and price controlled cheese and eggs from Machsanei Hashuk, and I buy chicken from the makolet with the chicken sales unless I find an amazing sale at a supermarket. I usually order spelt flour, pasta, rice, and other dry and canned goods in a once a month Rami Levy order. And I also occasionally find myself buying spices, vinegar and baking soda in kilo bags, and sometimes other baking supplies from a store in the shuk in Teverya that delivers here every few weeks.

I hope this helps get you thinking about what strategies you might want to use to keep your grocery bills down. I'd love to hear your best tips, too!

Join my WhatsApp group and my Facebook Group where I'll be posting my favorite deals!

Food vouchers from Misrad Hapnim

To combat food insecurity in Israel, Misrad Hapnim is distributing hundreds of thousands of shekels worth of food vouchers right now (February 2025). Many people have been automatically admitted to the program through their revacha services, but some eligible people may not be on the list.

If you think you might be eligible but aren't on a list to receive it, check out the Eligibility Simulator at https://govforms.gov.il/mw/forms/PopulationWithOutMunicipalityGalilArea@MOIN.gov.il 

After checking the simulator, clicking on the "Next Stage" button will take you to the "Submit Request" page. If you don't want to submit a request, don't click Next. If you do want to submit a request, be sure you have the required documentation available (a scan of your Teudat Zehut, including the "sefach", and income documentation).

Hope this helps someone out there get extra help when they need it! Feel free to share this post with anyone who might find it helpful!

If you need more financial assistance, you may find these posts helpful:
Click here to see posts labeled "financial assistance": https://www.kosherfrugal.com/search/label/financial%20assistance

Find me on Facebook

If you want to find (and share!) shopping deals, please join my deals groups on Facebook: 

Kosher Frugal

Israeli Shopping Overseas 

Live in Israel, Shop Online 

Israel Deals Made Easy (in English) 

I'm also on WhatsApp with an opt-in group where you'll get links to deals I find. Only admins can post.

What you REALLY need for Pesach

 Pesach's almost here! And the stores are getting full of special foods for Pesach. And isn't that so exciting?!
But then, you start to pile them into your shopping cart, and you suddenly realize that the cost really ADDS UP FAST. Uh oh. What about that little thing called "a budget"?

Here's the thing. Pesach is ONE week. So if you can make it one week without buying premade cakes and cookies and crackers and who knows what else, you'll save a lot of money.

There are some things you really do need for Pesach:

Matzah

Grape Juice or Wine

Maror (this can be lettuce! But I also bought a small piece of horseradish for about 6 NIS at Yesh)

Karpas (Potatoes or Celery)

Charoset (I always have to improvise this one because of my nut allergy and other family members' uncooked apple allergies. (So much fun!) Last year I made a stewed fruit charoset - chopped apples stewed with cinnamon, raisins, dates, and grape juice. I might have put some dried apricots in there but that's no longer an option for me due to another allergy popping up. It worked out well, though, so I'll probably do something similar again.)

Salt

Other basics for things you like to eat.

I make sure we have these foods available:

Chicken (whatever's on sale leading up to the holiday)

Beef if there's a good sale or if I stocked up another time and there's some in my freezer labeled Kosher for Pesach

Fish fillets if there's a good sale or if I stocked up another time and there's some in my freezer labeled Kosher for Pesach

Eggs

Oil

Butter

Jelly

Cream Cheese

Basic fruits and vegetables (including potatoes and onions because we MUST have potato kugel)

Ingredients for brownies not already listed above: potato starch, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, chocolate chips

If we buy tomato paste and cheese, we can make matzah pizza or matzah lasagna, so we try to make sure there's some of that around.

I like to make a HUGE vegetable soup at the beginning of the chag and use it for the chag and also several days of Chol Hamoed - this way there's food around.

I am committed to avoiding making anything that takes too much time or energy so that also will keep my expenses down.

Everything else is extra. My family really likes eating kneidlach and pesach rolls so having a couple packages of matzah meal on hand is good - but I don't personally make these anymore because my wheat allergy gets activated when I touch wheat-based products and any matzah meal dust in the air is hazardous to me...

I personally stock up at Pesach on things that are not going to contain traces of wheat at this time, but you don't need to if you don't have a reason to! So don't go crazy. 

If it's been a tough year for you financially, you can do this simply. Just make sure you have brownies on hand to keep everyone happy - make the recipe I posted and you can't go wrong! Warning: You may have to make a batch every day😀.

Do you have other "must-haves" for Pesach? Let me know!

Price Controlled Foods (Updated)

I realize it's been a while since I posted an update about price-controlled food items. As you may know, the Ministry of the Economy regulates some food prices in Israel. This means that certain consumer goods cannot be sold for a price higher than the price set by the government. A few prices have even changed since my last post about this, so here's the latest update. Maximum prices on this list were verified on February 14, 2024.

Make sure you're not overpaying for anything on this list:

1. BREADS

Note: The breads on this list are very specific types of breads, and the challah is a very specific kind of challah. 

2. SALT



 3. DAIRY PRODUCTS

    Note: I've also seen packages of sliced 28% yellow cheese that are pre-packaged, 400g, labeled "price controlled 13.20 ILS"

4. EGGS




There's always talk of adding items to the list (like fresh vegetables) or making changes (like swapping whole wheat bread for the white bread), but for now, this is the list of price-regulated foods.

If your store is overcharging for any of these items (check to be sure they are in fact the price-regulated item and not a premium version) - you can report the store to the proper authority using this online form.

Hope this helps you save more money, and don't forget to follow me on Facebook and join my Kosher Frugal group for more tips!

Best Shopping Find of the Month?

You all know that I'm a price sensitive shopper.

 And I'm definitely not opposed to stocking up if I find a great price on something we'll use.

You might feel the same, right?

So I thought I'd share what may be the best find of my month so far:

Yes, you read that right!

8 bottles of Carmel Selected Moscato wine (full-size bottles!) for just under 100 NIS! That includes the deposit (pikadon). Usually, we see this priced much higher - about 4/100 NIS.

This sale seems to have been available for a limited time on Rami Levy Online. I  guess I lucked out and was on their website when it went live, noticed it, and added them to my grocery order. It's since gone back up to about 25/bottle, but I wonder if they'll drop the price again soon!

And I checked the receipt when my order arrived, and I was, indeed, charged only 12.40 per bottle. So now we're good for our kiddush wine for a while! Maybe I should have ordered 12? I don't know - I didn't want to press my luck, so I went for 8.

I find that I can keep my grocery bill lower by placing an online order about once a month, and buying most of my fresh fruits and vegetables and other perishables at other stores I can easily get to. So it's very likely that had I not found this wine sale, I may have opted out of placing an online order this week and just waited until another time when I found a compelling sale.

Have you found any great deals?

What's your take on online shopping?

Shop the sales! (Grocery savings)

 For Israeli families, grocery bills represent a large percentage of their monthly spending.

And since food prices are typically on the rise, I thought I'd start sharing grocery deals again when I find them! 

So today, I was shopping at Rami Levy online.

And here's the thing - chicken was suddenly marked down! Yes, I had started to look yesterday, but suddenly today the prices went down. Maybe this happens more often than I realized?

I don't know, but either way, here are the chicken deals I found there today:

That is:

Chicken Wings: 5 NIS/kg

Chicken Thighs and Drumsticks: 14.90 NIS/kg

Chicken Thighs: 19.90 NIS/kg

Chicken Breast: 22.90 NIS/kg

Clearly I bought the first two - they limit you to 3 kg per item, so I ordered 3kg of wings and 3 kg of thighs + drumsticks.

There were also some decent prices for produce - so we picked up potatoes, onions, and purple cabbage for 1.90 NIS/kg, tomatoes and cucumbers for 2.90 NIS/kg, and a bag of avocadoes for 4.90 NIS/kg (but since I ordered that price seems to have jumped back up to over 15 NIS/kg). It's definitely worth checking for sales on Mondays and Tuesdays at Rami Levy online.

Happy savings! Let me know what you've found!

P.S. Some credit card "clubs" let you purchase Rami Levy gift cards for lower than face value. Check if yours does too, and save extra on your groceries!

SALES and meal planning/budgeting

I know I haven't been talking about grocery prices much lately. Life kind of kept me too busy to focus on it. However, groceries often account for a large percentage of people's budgets in this country, and so this becomes the topic of many conversations, in person and online. In my town, there's a near-constant chatter about prices and where and how to shop, and I see it in all sorts of online groups as well. I get it - it's really challenging to keep enough food around for a large(ish) family, especially with teens in the house. But since the onset of the pandemic, I've been mostly ordering my groceries online, and supplementing from one or more of my local makolets, and just hoping I can get everything I need while sticking to the budget I set. Usually I manage, but sometimes I go over, especially when there's a lot going on and I can't focus on food prep all that much.

So what do I do when I need to be careful?

Generally, I shop for sales, which means I focus on the produce I can get for 3 NIS/kilo or less (usually veggies not fruits), and this week I found a whole bunch!

Here's my 3 NIS or less produce haul for this week:

Tomatoes - 0.90 agurot/kilo
Cucumbers - 0.90 agurot/kilo

Carrots - 0.90 agurot/kilo

Cabbage (Purple and Green) - 0.90 agurot/kilo

White Potatoes - 0.90 agurot/kilo

Red Potatoes - 0.90 agurot/kilo

Watermelon - 0.90 agurot/kilo

Light Green Peppers - 1.90 NIS/kilo

Kohlrabi - 1.90 NIS/kilo

Eggplant - 2.90 NIS/kilo

Summer Squash (Kishuim) - 2.90 NIS/kilo

So now I just need to make sure I make lots of food that these veggies star in. Oh, and we'll be eating lots of watermelon because the one we got weighs TEN AND A HALF kilo!!

**This is where that meal planning idea comes in. It makes all the difference between using this food or throwing out food. So I should start planning my menu now, while my fridge is full of these deals!**

Other deals:

I also somehow stumbled upon those fruit flavored yogurts that are usually about 4 NIS each for 1.70 NIS each!

(I also bought the rest of our necessities, but that's not nearly as interesting as these cheap produce deals.)

I know there's a lot of talk about the high cost of produce right now, and I myself was feeling it acutely when I spent a week in the merkaz recently, where I couldn't find fruit for less than double what I pay here in the Golan. It was crazy! I bought some fruit anyway, because I couldn't imagine a week with no fruit, but it hurt a bit to pay those prices.

So I'm pleased to report that upon my return home I happily stocked the fridge with peaches and nectarines this week for 9.90 NIS/kilo and mangoes for 8 NIS/kilo or so!

I'd love to hear your thoughts about food prices in Israel and how you keep your grocery budget in check. Please drop a note below!

UPDATED PRICES: Price-Controlled Food List

Here it is!

Some of you recently found your way to my blog (welcome!) when looking for information about price regulation in Israel (certain foods are "price-controlled" by government regulation), and I realized it's been a while since I posted an update. A few prices have even changed since my last post about this, so it was time for a new one!

Make sure you're not overpaying for anything on this list:

1. BREADS

2. SALT



 3. DAIRY PRODUCTS

4. EGGS




There's always talk of adding items to the list (like fresh vegetables) or making changes (like swapping whole wheat bread for the white bread), but for now, this is the list of price-regulated foods.

If your store is overcharging for any of these items (check to be sure they are in fact the price-regulated item and not a premium version) - you can report the store to the proper authority using this online form, or by emailing Achifamishar@economy.gov.il

Hope this helps you save more money, and don't forget to follow me on Facebook and join my shopping group for more tips!

Discount: Online Grocery Shopping!

(this post contains affiliate links. When you click and make a purchase, I may get paid a commission. Thanks in advance for your support)

Awesome Discount Deal!

Shopping online (who wants to go the store right now with Corona going around?) - Try out Quik!!

Right now you can get a voucher worth 60 NIS towards your 300 NIS purchase, for just 10 NIS (net savings = 50 NIS!) Buy it here!

Click here to go to GROO to buy this deal!

Don't forget to follow my page on Facebook and join my Facebook Deals group or my Whatsapp Deals group! Thanks!

Those RED labels at the supermarket

About 3 years ago, I wrote about new food labels that would be coming soon. 

A year later, the Ministry of Health unveiled the plan to label foods that are high in saturated fat, salt, or sugar, and now, in 2020, we are starting to see the labels on products at the supermarket!

The red labels are designed to make it easier to see at a glance which foods are considered high in sugar, salt, or saturated fats.

Here's a quick guide to what having a label indicates to the consumer:

Substance	in 100g (solid food)	in 100ml (liquids)
Salt	more than 400mg	more than 100mg
Sugar	more than 10g	more than 5g
Saturated Fat	more than 4g	more than 3g

The new labels are the front of food packaging and look like this:

Hope this helps people - reading labels in Hebrew can be a challenge for some, so this should make the job a bit easier!

Coupon for soy milk! (FREE)

Meshek Tzuriel is offering a coupon for a free carton of their new soy "milk" (soy drink as they say in this country)!
All you have to do is click here and fill out a simple form with your name and contact information!

Happy savings!

Orlah Update - Iyar 5779

Here's the latest Orlah update, so you can shop for fruit in Israel with confidence!

This post is a follow up to the Kashrut for New Olim post. If you haven't seen it yet, please check it out -- there's important information there! 

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES in Israel - Specific Kashrut Issues

Unlike in other parts of the world, in Israel, fruits and vegetables are NOT automatically "kosher" - here we need to make sure that they are not "orlah" fruits (harvested during a tree's first 3 yrs, with other rules applying to year 4) and that trumot and ma'asrot have been taken (from both fruits and vegetables). Without these basics, these fruits and vegetables are NOT acceptable in a kosher kitchen!

If you shop at a market that doesn't have an ishur kashrut (kosher certification) on their produce, you'll need to investigate these issues further, if you are interested in adhering to the halachot of the Land of Israel OR if you regularly host people who assume the food in your home is kosher! I must say that it's important to familiarize yourself with these special halachot, as they are part of keeping kosher in Israel! (If you say you keep Kosher in Israel, everyone assumes that you have taken care of these issues; and if you don't, then you may be unwittingly putting someone in a situation they don't want to be in!) 

It's definitely possible to take trumot and maasrot on your own (I do it often), so vegetables are easiest to buy without a teudah, as that is all you need to do (and very often, it would be without a bracha). Some of the fruits on the market may be ok to purchase even from a non-certified establishment and just take trumot and maasrot, because of the extremely low percentage of orlah fruits being sold, but those lists change frequently, so you'll constantly need to stay up-to-date.

Other fruits can be a problem, because of orlah (from the first 3 years after the tree was planted). I try very hard to post a monthly update here on my site with a list of the fruits where the percentage of orlah fruits on the open market is greater than 0.5%. These fruits should only be bought from a reputable source that does not sell orlah fruits (i.e. a place with a teudah). This orlah issue is a serious issue for kosher consumers:

ORLAH Update for Iyar 5779

Fruits to AVOID buying without a teudah:

• Avocado - Haas and Reid varieties
• Blueberries
• Peach (Omer, White)
• Grapefruit (White)
• Olives for curing
• Olives for oil (Barnea)
• Lemon
• Apricot (large red. Ra'anana)
• Nectarine (Red, White, Gali-Binyamina, Snow -red speckled, Yellow)
• Grapes - SBS 125+, oval green grapes, red, dark red, Big Pearl green varieties
• Pitaya
• Papaya
• Prickly Pear (Sabra Fruit)
• Plum - large yellow, green-yellow
• Oranges - Choice Valencia
• Starfruit
• Passionfruit
• Almonds
• Figs

Please be sure to speak with your personal Halachic Authority about purchasing fruit in Israel without a teudah. Not everyone holds by the 0.5% threshold, and there are differences of opinion about certain fruits and whether they are subject to Orlah. This information is just for informational purposes and is not a halachic psak! Even if you follow a psak that relies on the 0.5% threshold, you still must take trumot and maasrot on all produce grown in Israel (or be sure it has been taken), in order to fulfill your halachic obligations.

Also, be aware that this list does NOT apply to fruit grown by an individual. If your friend has a fruit tree, you'll need to find out how old it is! 

I hope you find this helpful! Please follow or like my Facebook page and don't miss out on updates and other posts!

Orlah Update: Av 5778

This post is a follow up to the Kashrut for New Olim post. If you haven't seen it yet, please check it out -- there's important information there! 

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES in Israel - Specific Kashrut Issues

Unlike in other parts of the world, in Israel, fruits and vegetables are NOT automatically "kosher" - here we need to make sure that they are not "orlah" fruits (harvested during a tree's first 3 yrs, with other rules applying to year 4) and that trumot and ma'asrot have been taken (from both fruits and vegetables). Without these basics, these fruits and vegetables are NOT acceptable in a kosher kitchen!

If you shop at a market that doesn't have an ishur kashrut (kosher certification) on their produce, you'll need to investigate these issues further, if you are interested in adhering to the halachot of the Land of Israel OR if you regularly host people who assume the food in your home is kosher! I must say that it's important to familiarize yourself with these special halachot, as they are part of keeping kosher in Israel! (If you say you keep Kosher in Israel, everyone assumes that you have taken care of these issues; and if you don't, then you may be unwittingly putting someone in a situation they don't want to be in!) 

It's definitely possible to take trumot and maasrot on your own (I do it often), so vegetables are easiest to buy without a teudah, as that is all you need to do (and very often, it would be without a bracha). Some of the fruits on the market may be ok to purchase even from a non-certified establishment and just take trumot and maasrot, because of the extremely low percentage of orlah fruits being sold, but those lists change frequently, so you'll constantly need to stay up-to-date.

Other fruits can be a problem, because of orlah (from the first 3 years after the tree was planted). I have been posting a monthly update here on my site with a list of the fruits where the percentage of orlah fruits on the open market is greater than 0.5%. These fruits should only be bought from a reputable source that does not sell orlah fruits (i.e. a place with a teudah). This orlah issue is a serious issue for kosher consumers:

ORLAH Update for Av 5778

Fruits to AVOID buying without a teudah:

• Avocado - Reid variety
• Pears - Nashi variety
• Blueberries
• Annona
• Peach - variety 881, and large white
• Lemon
• Apricot - large
• Nectarine - several varieties of yellow, medium size white
• Seedless grapes: many or most varieties
• Seeded grapes: Muscat
• Papaya
• Pitaya (Dragon Fruit)
• Prickly Pear (Sabra Fruit)
• Starfruit
• Passionfruit
• Plum - Wickson, Miriam varieties
• Figs
• Valencia Oranges
• Apples - Bachir, Grand, and Brookfield

Please be sure to speak with your personal Halachic Authority about purchasing fruit in Israel without a teudah. Not everyone holds by the 0.5% threshold, and there are differences of opinion about certain fruits and whether they are subject to Orlah. This information is just for informational purposes and is not a halachic psak! Even if you follow a psak that relies on the 0.5% threshold, you still must take trumot and maasrot on all produce grown in Israel (or be sure it has been taken), in order to fulfill your halachic obligations.

Also, be aware that this list does NOT apply to fruit grown by an individual. If your friend has a fruit tree, you'll need to find out how old it is! 

I hope you find this helpful! Please follow or like my Facebook page and don't miss out on updates and other posts!

ORLAH Update for Iyar 5778

This post is a follow up to the Kashrut for New Olim post. If you haven't seen it yet, please check it out -- there's important information there! 

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES in Israel - Specific Kashrut Issues

Unlike in other parts of the world, in Israel, fruits and vegetables are NOT automatically "kosher" - here we need to make sure that they are not "orlah" fruits (harvested during a tree's first 3 yrs, with other rules applying to year 4) and that trumot and ma'asrot have been taken (from both fruits and vegetables). 

If you shop at a market that doesn't have an ishur kashrut (kosher certification) on their produce, you'll need to investigate these issues further, if you are interested in adhering to the halachot of the Land of Israel OR if you regularly host people who assume the food in your home is kosher! I must say that it's important to familarize yourself with these special halachot, as they are part of keeping kosher in Israel! (If you say you keep Kosher in Israel, everyone assumes that you have taken care of these issues; and if you don't, then you may be unwittingly putting someone in a situation they don't want to be in!) 

It's definitely possible to take trumot and maasrot on your own (I do it often), so vegetables are easiest to buy without a teudah, as that is all you need to do (and very often, it would be without a bracha). Some of the fruits on the market may be ok to purchase even from a non-certified establishment and just take trumot and maasrot, because of the extremely low percentage of orlah fruits being sold, but those lists change frequently, so you'll constantly need to stay up-to-date.

Other fruits can be a problem, because of a high possibility that they are orlah (from the first 3 yrs after the tree was planted). I have recently begun to post a monthly update on my website, with a list of the fruits where the percentage of orlah fruits on the open market is greater than 0.5%. These fruits should only be bought from a reputable source that does not sell orlah fruits (i.e. a place with a teudah):

ORLAH Update for Iyar 5778

Fruits to AVOID buying without a teudah:

• Avocado - Haas, Ruti, and Reid varieties
• Blueberries
• Peach - Yellow, "White Spring"
• Lemon
• Apricot
• Nectarine - Yellow: "Omer", "Red Glow" (I think); White: "Gadi"
• Seedless grapes: Green/Black 
• Papaya
• Prickly Pear (Sabra Fruit)
• Starfruit
• Passionfruit
• Valencia Oranges

Please be sure to speak with your personal Halachic Authority about purchasing fruit in Israel without a teudah. Not everyone holds by the 0.5% threshold, and there are differences of opinion about certain fruits and whether they are subject to Orlah. This information is just for informational purposes and is not a halachic psak! Even if you follow a psak that relies on the 0.5% threshold, you still must take trumot and maasrot on all produce grown in Israel (or be sure it has been taken), in order to fulfill your halachic obligations.

Also, be aware that this list does NOT apply to fruit grown by an individual. If your friend has a fruit tree, you'll need to find out how old it is! 

I hope you find this helpful! Please follow my Facebook page and don't miss out on updates and other posts!

Orlah Fruits in the Marketplace - Update for Tevet 5778

This post is a follow up to the Kashrut for New Olim post. If you haven't seen it yet, please check it out -- there's important information there! 

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES in Israel

Unlike in other parts of the world, in Israel, fruits and vegetables are NOT automatically "kosher" - here we need to make sure that they are not "orlah" fruits (harvested during a tree's first 3 yrs, with other rules applying to year 4) and that trumot and ma'asrot have been taken (from both fruits and vegetables). 

If you shop at a market that doesn't have an ishur kashrut (kosher certification) on their produce, you'll need to investigate these issues further, if you are interested in adhering to the halachot of the Land of Israel OR if you regularly host people who assume the food in your home is kosher! I must say that it's important to familarize yourself with these special halachot, as they are part of keeping kosher in Israel! (If you say you keep Kosher in Israel, everyone assumes that you have taken care of these issues; and if you don't, then you may be unwittingly putting someone in a situation they don't want to be in!) 

It's definitely possible to take trumot and maasrot on your own (I do it often), so vegetables are easiest to buy without a teudah, as that is all you need to do (and very often, it would be without a bracha). Some of the fruits on the market may be ok to purchase even from a non-certified establishment and just take trumot and maasrot, because of the extremely low percentage of orlah fruits being sold, but those lists change frequently, so you'll constantly need to stay up-to-date.

Other fruits can be a problem, because of a high possibility that they are orlah (from the first 3 yrs after the tree was planted). I have recently begun to post a monthly update on my website, with a list of the fruits where the percentage of orlah fruits on the open market is greater than 0.5%, so should only be bought from a reputable source that does not sell orlah fruits (i.e. a place with a teudah) that should really help everyone avoid the orlah problem:

ORLAH Update for Tevet 5778

Fruits to AVOID buying without a teudah:

• Avocado - Ettinger variety, Haas variety, and one similar to Ettinger called "Ruti" I think
• Blueberries
• Lemon
• Lemon-lime
• Papaya
• Prickly Pear (Sabra Fruit)
• Starfruit
• Passionfruit
• Clementines - Murcott variety, Hadas Variety, and Tami variety
• Valencia Oranges

Please be sure to speak with your personal Halachic Authority about purchasing fruit in Israel without a teudah. Not everyone holds by the 0.5% threshold. This information is just for informational purposes and is not a halachic psak! Even if you follow a psak that relies on the 0.5% threshold, you still must take trumot and maasrot on all produce grown in Israel (or be sure it has been taken), in order to fulfill your halachic obligations.

Also, this list does not apply to fruit grown by an individual. If your friend has a fruit tree, you'll need to find out how old it is! 

I hope you find this helpful! Please follow my Facebook page and don't miss out on updates and other posts!