Selling your chametz

Chabad arranges the sale of your chametz before Passover, free of charge.

What chametz is, and why it gets sold

Over Passover, Jewish law forbids eating, owning, or benefiting from chametz — any food made from grain (wheat, barley, rye, oats, or spelt) that has risen or fermented. That covers bread, pasta, cereal, cake, and crackers; many alcoholic drinks, including whiskey, beer, and most vodkas; and processed foods with chametz ingredients in them.

Putting it in a cupboard isn't enough — owning it is the problem. Chametz that stays in a Jew's possession through the holiday becomes permanently forbidden, even after Passover ends.

So instead of throwing out a pantry every spring, Jewish law allows the chametz to be sold to a non-Jew before the holiday and bought back afterwards. The sale has to be done in a halachically valid way, which is where we come in. After Passover the chametz is repurchased and is yours to use again.

Pots, pans, and utensils

Kitchenware that's been used for chametz — pots, pans, baking trays, cutlery, dishes, small appliances — shouldn't be used over Passover unless it has been properly kashered. Some items can't practically be kashered at all, so most people simply put them away for the week.

Store or mark those items and include them in the sale. Selling your chametz through us covers the chametz utensils you won't be using, as well as the food.

How to arrange it

The sale works by appointing the Rabbi as your agent to sell the chametz on your behalf. That authorization has to be given properly, and it isn't something to do by filling in a box on a web page and hoping — so contact the Rabbi and he'll walk you through it and take down what he needs: your name, your address, and where the chametz is being kept.

There is no charge for this. It is a service, not a fundraiser.

Afterwards

The chametz is repurchased once Passover ends, and can be used again from that point. If you want to know the exact time the holiday ends this year, it's on the times page, computed rather than typed in.

Also for Passover: the community Seders, shmurah matzah, and Passover food to order.