Many years ago I heard a joke that goes “do you know why מצה is called לחם עוני? Because by the time you’re done paying for it, you’re an עוני”. It’s a cute joke, but I can’t say it’s all that funny anymore. As anyone who has the duty to buy matzos knows, the prices have become astronomical.
I went matzah baking last week with my chabura in New York. We worked for hours, making sure our ‘run’ would adhere to all the chumros and the matzos would be without any sfeikos. When we were done and the employees of the matzah bakery began weighing and pricing the boxes, the collective faces and hearts of my entire chaburah dropped. $41 a pound. $41! A pound! How could flour and water possibly cost so much?
This isn’t a new phenomenon. The price of matzos have been rising for years. But I feel like they’ve completely gone off the rails in recent years. When matzos were $25 a pound, it was expensive, but it was ok. A matzah bakery has overhead expenses they need to cover, and at the end of the day, it’s a business as well. I am not one to complain that someone else is earning a living, even a comfortable one, from my patronage. Life a comfortable life, kol hakavod. But I do have a problem when the prices become little more than highway robbery.
Matzah bakeries know that many people want to be there when their matzos are baked to make sure there are no impurities or issues during the process of it’s baking. And for the past decade or so, these bakeries have slowly raised their prices, each year a bit more, seeing just how much people would pay for the mitzvah of matzah. Of course, people will pay a lot, and these bakeries are therefore still bringing in dozens of chaburos year in and year out. But where is the breaking point? At the pace that the price of matzah has risen, it won’t be long before baking your own matzos becomes a luxury, one that only the wealthy can afford.
It shouldn’t be this way. Matzah bakeries don’t have to be nonprofits, and I’m not recommending that they should be. There’s a certain responsibility that comes with a bakery being a for-profit which creates an impetus to strive for high standards and that’s a good thing. But the price of matzah has got to come down.
While it is true matzah is expensive, but understand, the amount of work that goes into it as well as the manpower needed to run such an operation, is vast.
Matzoh baking is not intended for people like you, who obviously work for your money. It is intended for yeshivaleit and rabbaim , who get many different stipends before Yom Tov to allow them to bake chabura matzoh at 40 dollars a lb. if you do not pay tuition and do not pay for your chasunas I do not think it is such a big deal to pay 40 a lb.
WELL SAID
I just had to respond to such a stupid comment, I never heard such a stupid thing in my life.
you think yeshivaleit and rebbeim are making it month to month so when they get stipends for yom tov they have nothing else to do with it then to buy expensive matzah?
They have much much less money then you who “work for your money” – and they are doing it for you, they are mechanech your children – they are klei kodesh.. and if they decide to spend the money that they are given to pay the astronomical prices of matzah instead of buying new clothing for every person in the family like you “who works for his money” needs to do.
Please leave the yeshivaleit alone
So true. For 2 pounds of BROKEN MATZAH it’s $100. BROKEN. You could get cheaper matzah but Who is the Hechsher. Also this specific brand is thinner. BROKEN = $100. Crazy… between the matzah , meats And every other necessity for Pesach who has money for the “extras”. Then schools start asking to help out and give extra money for the Rebbeim . And by extras I don’t mean Luxuries, I mean even a box of expensive cookies. I even have to watch where I go for chol hamoed trips, because the price of food and things are so outrageous .
@not for you, well said. You may want to add in vouchers for clothing and shoes. For the rest of us who pay full price, it is very tough!!
So i guess the last few commenters are very jealous of those yeshivaleit and Rebbeim who support a family of 12 on 35,000 a year and end up getting a few dollars of tzedokoh before Yom Tov. I’m sure you would all switch places with them financially .
I agree that the last comments may have been a little overly cynical, but there is some real dis-connect going on. I can’t speak for all those who are working, but would assume their are many whose situation is similar to mine.
This time of year, there are many additional expenses from food, to yom tov clothing, etc. Additionally, many people give more tzedakah this time of year, on both Purim and Pesach, many of these Tzedakas are time sensitive for yom tov, and many people give, even though they are tight themselves. I also try to give my childrens rabbeim and teachers a nice gift to help them through yom tov.
I recently was approached by someone to give an “extra” gift to someone who helps in the community as a sign of appreciation.Not a case of tzedakah, but just a nice sign of appreciation.
While it was a nice idea, it struck me as a little odd. Why now, when so many people are collecting for tzedakah, and there are so many time sensitive needs, and budgets are tight. Why not wait a month or 2? I thought about it a little and realized why there was a disconnect. the person collecting, was in chinuch, and likely benefited from the many programs and gifts that people give this time of year. their is nothing wrong with that, and I support those causes, but it did may me realize the severe dis-connect. For those who are working, this is a very financially demanding time of year, however, for those who maybe on the receiving end, they actually may be better off this time of year, than they are during the rest of it.
I think it is a great thing that as a community we have done so much to create a situation where people are helped through Yom Tov. However, this does create a situation where those, who maybe on the receiving end, lose site of the stress that others are dealing with at this time. not everyone who works is a millionaire.
It was not a cynical comment. The rabbaim obviously have the money to spend 40 a lb on matzoh. Most chaburahs in that price range are made up of rabbaim and yungerleit. I am happy for them. Middle class working people should not complain about the matzoh they should buy regular matzohs in the grocery.
So sad that there is such sarcasm toward our hard working and underpaid rabbeim. It’s not surprising, though. Chazal spoke about sinas am haaretz litalmid chacham many years ago.
L.T.
Disgusted by some of the comments on here.
L.T. your comment is no better, Just because someone works does not make them an Am Haaretz, definitely not what the chachamim refer to as an Am Haaretz. People are more than just how they make a parnassah, the same can be said in reverse.
Machines maztahs are still very cheap.
Let me get this straight you went matzah baking before getting a price per pound?
I believe Bingo offers well priced Matzah. Not chaburah matzos but still a good price.
Let me get this very straight! Rabiem are NOT making 35k a year. Today’s market it’s a regular job where they get paid much nicer then anyon else. Let see who has a summer home in the Catskills? Or being paid for? Who gets free camp? Who gets free Matzoh’s? The Rabiem. So add up all the free stuff and they make B”H ends meet. Yes we also have summer vacation but WE have to pay for it. I do respect our rebiems, I do admire their holy work but don’t make a putty out of them. The end of the day is they’re a winner.
It’s not sarcasm to rebeim who are underworked and underpaid IF they live within their mean’s, but if they are supported with vouchers and tzedoko to enable them to have more than those that earn more $ than them but are not eligible for handouts, that makes it hard for the middle class. just saying. Pls try to understand how all these tzedokos are raising the bar. Where it used to be acceptable for everyone to live within their mean’s, i.e. the rebeims kids had less because they couldn’t afford it all, the middle.class had a little more and the upper class had most. Today, the poor have more than the middle class and it is a struggling middle class who is most affected during these expensive seasons.
If you feel you can sell matzah for so much cheaper, open up your own bakery. Charge 1/2 price and everyone will come to you.
You can make a killing while helping everyone out
I don’t know why you are calling it “flour and water” The main cost of hand shmurah matzah is not the ingrediants ,it is the labor. I suspect you went in with many chumros which reduced the yield per worker, who must get their hourly wage regardless of the amount that you make. If you went with such a chaburah you probably know that there are high levels of skill involved in baking hand matzahs properly and the workers need to be compensated accordingly.
If you want to buy “flour and water” you can buy a box of machine shmurah matzah for $6 or $7 a pound.
Matzah is not a luxury. It’s a necessity. We need universal matzah-care. Where are the askanim when we need them?
The government should provide every person with 2 lbs. of matzah and one esrog per year, and the rich should pay more to subsidize the poor. Obviously we would need some system of deductibles and copays.
So, like Obamacare, everyone should pay $500 per year, the rich should pay $5,000 per year, and the 1% should pay $50,000 per year. There would be an additional 20% copay and a $1,000 deductible. After the deductible is met, every person would be entitled to 2 lbs of matzah per year at a price of not more than $450 per pound. The provider would need to fill out the proper paperwork of course.
This would be a great system and would ensure every person gets matzah at an affordable price
First of all, who asks for the price when they are done baking?!
Secondly, everyone knows that chaburah matzah, especially if you adhere to all the chumros like you mentioned, is substantially more expensive then standard shemurah matzah.
If you can’t afford it then be like the rest of Klal Yisroel who eat regular shemurah matzah with wonderful reliable hashgachos.
Some of the comments above are absolutely disgusting. I wish my sons rabbeim were making ten times what I’m making as a working person. They deserve it.
Am I jealous of them? Maybe, but I’m only jealous of the schar their getting for teaching the future of klal Yisroel.
They are the ones doing true עבודה
Unfortunately this problem isn’t just with matzoh is with everything with yiddishkeit. Is there a reason Sheitel marchers used to charge $25 to wash and set a Sheitel and now they’re charging $45!!!! Did the cost of shampoo go up that much?? Highway robbery! Don’t know how they don’t feel guilty. A nice Sheitel was $2500 and now 4-5000!!!! And children and ladies clothes! We are all supposed to shop in frum clothing stores to give our fellow yid parnassah. But then we go in for a skirt and have to pay more than double you can get it in the mall or on line for!!!! Mark ups are crazy!!!! I agree that it’s time to price things normally and not take advantage of “the yid factor” in any event everyone will have to give a din vicheshbon at the end of the day! Hope they all have an answer to why they made all these items unaffordable!
Such stupid people who post comments on here.
I’m a Rebbe , who’s school is 3 paychecks behind.
Three paychecks of the very small salary I get.
All the people that post here, are either jealous, stupid or both!
Um, with the way you speak, I certainly hope you are not a Rebbi.
The whole premise of the letter writer is mistaken. The point of chaburah matzos is to employ many extra chumros that one would not get by just purchasing from the regular run. Among these chumros is usually smaller production so there are no shehiyos (matzos sitting- even for a short time which is halachicly acceptable) and rejection of many more finished matzos than the bakery normally would. If the bakery normally charges 18-22 dollars a pound, and during the chaburah run they do half the production, of course the cost will come at to $40 a lb.
You can find stock hand matzos for around $12 a pound if you are willing to settle for a basic standard of kashrus. It is laudible to strive for a higher standard and join a chaburah but if it leaves you with a financial burden and a sour taste, perhaps you are better off going for the $12 a pound hand matzos and having more Simchas Yom Tov.
I am a yungerman, and I join a chaburah and buy the chaburah matzos for the Seder only ( it’s a hiddur in the lishmah which is relevant by the Seder) and use cheap matzos the rest of pesach so I can afford shoes and maybe an outfit or two for my kids ( last years sale racks; my middle class working neighbors wear matching new season outfits and shoes but my kids know we are happy with what we have and don’t have to keep up with the working middle class standards).
I think many working people vastly overestimate the living standards of most yungerleit. There are exceptions but generally their standards are far below the working middle class is many aspects; the cars they drive (mine is well over 10 years old and far below the standards in my neighborhood) the vacations they take, the food they serve during the week, the clothes they buy etc. There are certainly exceptions but look hard and you will see the many who live below your standards.
As Rav Levi Yitzchak Miberditchev said “bashamayim mimaal”- when it comes to ruchnoyus strive to emulate those above you “vi’al haaretz mitachas “- when it comes to gashmiyus look only at all those below you and be happy with your lot…..
My chabura matzohs cost “only” $30 a lb.
I really really hope my kids’ Rabbiem are not paying on here…. Just saying
Where do you get chaburah matza for $30 lb?
Yes it’s Y”T season when the working people have it the hardest. We dont get breaks ever, maybe if we beg we get a slight tuition scholarship. We dont get vouchers or food donations or anything of the sort. But we’re bombarded with requests for donations I simply tell the callers sorry I also need help paying my bills.
Theres another thing I’ve come to realize lots of rabbaim and kollel families have practically no debt where as the working ones have enormous debts. Because of all the stipends they get that help them thru tuition camp and y’t.
So you went to …………. Matzah bakery in Williamsburg. You bought Shita Rosh Matzah with nothing waiting for more than a few seconds. If it waited you put it aside, if it was soft you put it aside, if it had anything that looked like a fold you put it aside. Like everyone says you can get cheaper Matzah. Don’t by the top of the line product and then complain that bakeries are ripping you off.
@anon., I guess I’m the exception. No matching clothes. Lucky if it’s new. No vacation in the last five years, no meat – not even for cholent. Both I and my spouse work. Bh tuition is paid. That’s priority. And this time of year is very draining!!! You’re not the only one
What our ancestors would do and what mesirus nefesh they would go through to be able to bake and eat Matzah on Pesach! Does it really only come down to the money? It’s THE Mitzvas Hachag. Look at it as an investment for the future doros of Klal Yisroel to show them the chashivus of Mitzvos. It’s priceless!
For those who have an issue with rabbeim and kollel yungerleit paying so much for matzahs consider this: my suits cost less then $100 each. My shirts $20 each. My shoes less than $75 each. Black hats less than $200 each. No vacations. Paying less than $270/month for my car lease. No going out to restaurants. I can can on but you get the point.
Its called priorities.
You should be praising those who spend more on mitzvos and less on gashmius.
Regarding the price of matzhas, its justified.
You can’t have chumros and not pay for it. Also the reason why you only know the price at the end is because it all depends on how much you produce. If your chumros cause them to yield less matzhas they will add that loss into the price per pound – rightfully so!
No need to take your personal frustration public.
Re: #23 Moshe Katz “You should be praising those who spend more on Mitzvos”, in general, you are correct. But just because someone pays more for Chaburah Matzos, does that mean they are actually paying more for Mitzvos than someone who purchases less expensive matzoh with a reliable hashgachah? If someone is in the unfortunate situation where they have to rely on others, is it justifiable to spend the extra money on the the extra chumras? How many people spend the many on the chaburah matzos because they believe that that is what is halachically required, and how many people do it so they can tell others about their expensive chaburah matzos? The same can be said regarding esrogim.
You can also make the case the other way. In general, a $100 suit is not the same quality as a $300 suit. I have a suit that is 5 years old that still looks new. Does a $200 hat last as long as a $300 hat? In my experience, it does not. I have been on both sides of the equation, the $300 hat lasted more than twice as long without losing shape or color.
Putting people into different groups and judging them based on a broad group is wrong and not productive. I don’t tell people how much I paid for my suits or Matzohs, and don’t ask them what they paid for theirs, because it is none of my business.
@D yes you are the exception. There are exceptions on both sides and no meat in the cholent and no vacation for five years is the exception among middle class working families. Most of my relatives and many friends are working now across the spectrum of professions, skill sets, and income levels so I can tell you with certainty that no meat in the cholent is the exception. A package of flanken ends for under $5 a week @NPGS to flavor the cholent is within reach of virtually everyone I know. Take pride in the fact that you sacrifice so much for sechar limud, and may Hashem send you parnassa birevach bikarov.
I can’t believe the comments I’m seeing here. My husband is in kollel (BMG stipend only) and I support the family or rather try to. and yes tuition is a top priority. my car was bought 3rd hand fifteen years old. Who buys clothes, it’s hand- me- downs or deja new. I don’t know what $$ you are talking about that we get for Y.T. The vouchers are worthless for me. you give me off 15% if I spend $150 or more in the store on specific dates only with cash only. (most of the stores are too upper class for me that even after a discount it will cost me more than going to the cheap store. Cash? I don’t have any, all I have is a credit card and credit card debt. So I don’t gain anything from the vouchers and I don’t know about any other $$ (maybe for rebbeim, I don’t know) so if you can please enlighten me on where I can get help I will appreciate it very much. It would be nice to feel like I can buy whatever food I need for Y.T. without going more into debt.
Treeintheforest: I never said someone who works for a living is an am haaretz. That’s ridiculous! I said those bitter sarcastic hateful comments come from an haratzim.
The letter qriter is right about 1 thing – the price has gone up the last few yrs, just $1-$2/lbs per year but, let’s be honest, costs didn’t rise. Labor is the same, flour is the same, rent is the same as well as wood, Insurance etc etc. Or, if it went up, it didn’t go up THAT much. I told my family I wanna start using machine matzohs for Chol HaMoed. Naturally my wife almost threw me out of the house.
Oh well.
Maybe next year.
@Notforyou-
We are a kollel family but do not receive any support, programs, tzedaka or vouchers ever. We do get BMG’s biweekly checks of $172, with one extra one before yom tov. We are grateful for that, but that does not cover much at all. It doesn’t matter… this is the life I chose. I pay tuition, give extra checks to my kids’ rebbeim, pay for a small amount of chaburah matzah, and do my best to stay out of debt. Please don’t paint all yungerleit and rebbeim as having the easy life, or having it made. Of course some people may have it easier than you, just as some working families have it easier than us. We all do our best, and ultimately, we all chose the lifestyle we live, so why complain??
@anon., this was not written for pity, just to explain not to judge others. When in a grocery, and the person in front of you has a wagon filled with goodies and ebt pays for it, and I have to think about most purchases and pay the cash, i sometimes wonder who has it easier. But of course, no judging. Just explaining how some middle class are really tight as they don’t qualify for help. May hashem send everyone what they need and if we all spend money for our needs and not our wants, we can keep the bar low.
And one more thing. Along with the $5 flanken, most people you know probably throw in the Bina, or Ami or mishpacha, it’s only $5. But not when you shop on a budget. Both of us working, and we have never bought any of those either. Not complaining. Woulnt change places with them , just explaining that yeahivaleit don’t have to be so jealous of working people (those that stay within their mean’s)
Hope this can alleviate some of the burden, the Lakewood matzah bakery is listed by visa as a grocery/supermarket/bakery. The chase freedom credit card this quarter is offering 5% back on grocery stores. It seems that this would meet the requirements for the bonus. It may not be a lot of money, but definitely something. Chag kosher VSAMAIACH!!
I agree with Kollel – Which Stipends? Which Vouchers? I wish I knew. I’m in kollel for many years and the only time the stipend was really nice was when a big gvir gave an extra check of $400….bought a new hat and suit that was 10 yrs overdue. My kids get only cheap things. we love hand me downs and deja new. my teens now are a little tricky so we splurge on new outfits for their self esteem but i shop early to see if there are any cheaper pieces like for $85. Using a 15% coupon at the end when only the $200 dresses are left doesn’t help. I never buy Ami magazines who can afford it? I read the voice. AND just because you see someone buying goodies on EBT – KNOW that perhaps the children have been deprived the last week of the month and now they are buying them some nosh. Do you not buy your kids nosh? EBT covers only a fraction of the food budget and i’m not talking about meat… Everyone can be as rich or as poor as they are BUT if everyone would live within their means and not worry about what other ppl have, live would be much simpler for EVERYONE!!! the middle class if they have or not would be happy. there would be no need to give the rebbes so much as they would have smaller hasagos…etc…
Somebody write a letter about the rising price of matza, something we should all be concerned about, and the comments section becomes a debate of who has it easier parnassa wise,yeshivaleit,rebbeim or baalei batim….
Am i missing something?
Most rabbeim i know, qualify for:
Ebt/ food stamps
Section8.
Parsonage.
Partial free to all free tuition.
Free obama phone.
Heap.
Free to mostly free insurance.
Erev yom tov food packages.
I may have missed a few.
You do the math!
one needs to re read the letter. I see the words I want to do this, those who want that. You can’t always get what you want. That’s the issue with this article. You want to join a chaburah. You are not required to. Unless with all your chumras you are saying that those of us who don’t use chaburah matzos are eating chametz (chas vi shalom) . I do not see where working people or matzo bakeries are required to encourage or support chumras you want. I think it would be a better chumrah to watch what comes out of the mouth vs what goes in it.
The saddest aspect of all of this is that people are paying over their head for nice chumros, while some of the workers are not shomrei shabbos – a serious halachic issue. גלתה יהודה מעוני ומרוב עבודה