Separating Attached Yogurts on Shabbos

May two Containers of Leben be Separated on Shabbos?

Separating two leben containers which were connected since production is forbidden on Shabbos for two reasons: the melachah of mechatech (the prohibited act of cutting something down to a desired size), and primarily the issur of tikkun mana (the prohibition of fixing a vessel), a derivative of makeh b’patish (literally, the strike of a hammer, indicating an act of completion). This occurs at separation, since the connected items were not considered a user-friendly ‘vessel’ until they were separated. 

Similarly, separating two ice pops on Shabbos that were attached since production (as opposed to having been separated previously and later reattached) poses the same two problems described above: cutting the ices to the desired size, and fashioning a useable bag of ices. 

Some poskim offer various justifications to explain why the above prohibitions don’t apply in these cases, and permit separating them on Shabbos. However, one should avoid these issues and make sure to separate them before Shabbos. #445

https://halacha2go.com?number=445

Practical Halacha: One minute a day. By Horav Yosef Yeshaya Braun, shlita, Mara D'asra and member of the Badatz of Crown Heights.