Streit’s: Matzo and the American Dream

The Streit family has held firmly to tradition for 5 generations, churning out 40% of the nation's matzo on machinery as old as the factory itself

• Christina Zeiders
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  Christina Zeiders is the Communications Specialist at WITF. She helps get the word out about all of WITF's programs, events and community conversations.

Matzo is an unleavened flatbread that is part of Jewish cuisine and is an integral element of the Passover festival. The Streit’s factory and the Streit family have been churning flour and water into matzos for five generations in ovens as old as the factory itself.

Streit’s: Matzo and the American Dream is a story of tradition, of resilience, and a celebration of a family whose commitment to their heritage and employees is proof that a family that bakes together, stays together.

In the heart of New York City’s Lower East Side stand four unassuming tenement buildings that housed the Streit’s Matzo factory since 1925. Director Michael Levine, who has deep family roots on the Lower East Side, knew there was a story to be told the moment he walked into the factory:

“Here, just steps from the now-hip neighborhood, stood a living lineage to the Lower East Side’s immigrant past. Dozens of workers buzzed around ancient machinery, as old as the factory itself, while rabbis kept careful watch, ensuring that each batch met the strictest standards. The owners – the great grandsons and great-great-grandson of founder Aron Streit – sat behind the desks of their ancestors, holding tight to their family tradition and heritage despite the obvious challenges of running a factory out of tenement buildings in the 21^st century.”

Though the factory seems a century removed from the world around it, it is not immune to the forces that challenge manufacturing and family businesses everywhere.

The film follows the three cousins who own Streit’s – Alan Adler, Aron Yagoda and Aaron Gross – during their final year in the historic New York City factory, as they make the difficult decision to move from New York City’s rapidly gentrifying Lower East Side to Rockland County, New York in 2015.

Watch Streit’s: Matzo and the American Dream Monday, April 18 at 9pm on WITF TV. You can stream WITF TV live through the PBS Video app or at video.witf.org. Set a reminder to watch or add it to your calendar here.