It is one of the most interesting religious commandments in Judaism, which generations of farmers have kept, with the aim of sustaining and benefitting the earth, and a commandment that was renewed with the Jews’ return to the Land of Israel and the creation of the Jewish state. The commandment of Shmita is that every seventh year the farmer must “leave be” his land, let it rest and replenish its nutrients and fertility, allowing for the rehabilitation of the ecological system from human influence.

With the first wave of diaspora Jewish immigration to Israel in the 19th century, after hundreds of years in exile, the conflict began regarding whether or not to fulfill the commandment of Shmita. With the years, the conflict has sharpened, with religious nationalist rabbis easing the burden and allowing solutions that would still follow Jewish law, such as leasing the land for a year to a non-Jew, who would continue growing the agricultural produce. 

Ultra-Orthodox rabbis oppose this workaround and prefer agricultural produce that comes from abroad. In the last few decades, the conflict has come up every Shmita year, and the ultra-Orthodox rabbis, who have had great influence over the governments and coalitions, threatened to cancel the kosher certifications of grocers who sell agricultural produce from Israel during the Shmita year. 

The conflict continues, but the Central Rabbinate ultimately authorized the marketing of Israeli agricultural produce grown by a non-Jew leasing the land. The ultra-Orthodox, who don’t accept this authorization, prefer foreign produce, part of which had been supplied over the years by the Palestinian farmers of the Gaza Strip. What’s interesting is that even during the rule of Hamas, the ultra-Orthodox have preferred to buy produce from Gaza farmers, despite heavy criticism in Israel of this practice. Their main reason for doing so is the availability and relatively lower price than imported produce from other countries.