Q. I once read an article where someone was saying there was a problem with orange juice (even with a hechsher) because of "scale bugs" on the peels. I am just wondering if this potential issue would cause a problem with me slicing lemons and putting the slices (with the peels) into my water. I don't know if lemons have a "scale bug" issue or not . But if they do, can I put them into my water or do I need to remove the peel before putting the lemon into the water.
Thanks so much!
A. There are scale insects in lemons. You can get a good idea of what they look like at www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wCGfZkv88A. However they may not necessarily present a problem in the U.S. and Canada. The following is an excerpt from an article published recently (5 Towns Jewish Times) by the title Are The Bugs in Tropicana Orange Juice Kosher? By Rabbi Yair Hoffman: “Why don’t the scale bugs come off in our hands after we peel an orange? In Israel, Rav Moshe Vaye, the leading halachic expert on bugs, writes that it is a serious problem and one may not peel an orange and then eat the fruit unless the scales have been removed or unless the one who peels it wears gloves while peeling and then removes them. It may be a little-known fact, but in the United States, this is not a problem with off-the-shelf oranges because the fruit is waxed and the scale bugs that remain after the intense high-pressure wash do not come off, on account of the wax.” The same should apply to shelf lemons.
Horav Shlomo Miller's Shlit”a opinion is that if you are to place unpeeled slices of lemons into your tea or similar, you should on the onset wash them, scrub them well and inspect them before. however, after the fact they would be permitted.
Rabbi A. Bartfeld as revised by Horav Shlomo Miller Shlit”a
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