(Photo: Ben Sales/JTA)
By David I Klein - October 13, 2022
JTA — A bumper crop of etrogs is taking a more direct route to Israel this year, thanks to a historic confluence of geopolitics and religious observance.
Once home to the largest Jewish community in the Arab world, Morocco has a long history of producing the citrus fruit used by millions of Jews every Sukkot — in fact, tradition holds that etrog trees were first planted in the Atlas mountains nearly 2,000 years ago by Jews who found shelter amongst the Berber tribes there after the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem.
Jewish communities around the world import hundreds of thousands of Moroccan etrogs every year: They’re more affordable than the Calabrian variety, the Diamante Citron, prized by some Hasidic groups, which can command hundreds of dollars for an unblemished specimen.
Read More: Times of Israel