Manhattan matzo factory adapts, thrives

Streit’s, Inc., located on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, isn’t your typical family business.  

For one thing, it’s been around for nearly a century. For another, it produces, on an hourly basis, 1,100 pounds of matzo, the unleavened bread traditionally eaten by Jews during Passover.

In fact, Streit’s owns fully one-quarter of the US matzo market, according to Agence France-Presse.

“The business started originally with my great-grandfather Aron Streit and his elder son Irving Streit,” Alan Adler, one of the owners of the factory, told the wire service.

“We now have two fourth-generation cousins and one fifth-generation cousin running the business, and in addition there are other family members who have stock but don’t work every day.”

Producing the company’s Passover matzos is no simple task. The fare, which symbolizes the Jewish exodus from Egypt 5,000 years ago and traditionally consists of just flour and water, must be made following strict religious requirements.