Last week, YNet reported that Israel’s Knesset is considering using free-range eggs in its on-site eateries. YNet noted:

Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin is considering banning the use of factory-farmed eggs at the parliament’s eateries and instructing them to use free-range and organic eggs instead ….

The Knesset speaker told Anonymous [an Israeli animal rights group] that he has instructed Dan Landau, the Knesset’s director-general, to check whether the change to free-range eggs can be made during the signing of the next contract with the owner of the parliament’s eateries.

While Rivlin seems well-intentioned, it’s debatable whether free-range eggs are substantially less cruelly produced than conventional eggs from hens in battery cages. In the U.S., labels like “free-range” are poorly defined, and well-intentioned consumers aren’t necessarily buying what they think they are. If a huge shed houses thousands of birds in tight quarters and has a tiny door that allows a small fraction of the birds access to an outdoor fenced-in area, an American egg producer can label eggs from those birds as “free-range.” This might be better than the horror of battery cages, but I avoid eating all eggs because a seemingly better alternative isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

I didn’t want to assume that the situation was identical in Israel, so Tel Aviv–based Pete Cohon (the founder of VeggieJews) referred me to more information. I don’t know with certainty how reliable information from the Israeli animal rights group Shevi is, but it’s the best source that I’m currently aware of.

Shevi notes that in Israel, regardless of whether eggs come from “free-range” birds or birds in battery cages, the birds are still subject to appalling abuses. Hens have their sensitive beaks seared off with hot blades (i.e., debeaking), and male chicks, who cannot lay eggs, are typically killed right after birth. Hens are slaughtered when their egg production declines to the point where it’s no longer profitable and are generally slaughtered in the same conditions as birds in the conventional egg industry. Shevi adds:

The hens are genetically bred to lay as many as 300 eggs per year instead of the 12-20 that they would naturally lay. In addition, the eggs they are bred to lay are larger than the tube that the eggs go through in their bodies, so each laying is accompanied by pain and pressure being applied to their inner-organs around the tube to the extent that sometimes some of their inner organs fall out of their body.

Shevi concludes, “The attempt to compare between the types of ways to produce eggs and to conclude to buy free-range eggs because the ‘regular’ techniques are too cruel is a failed attempt, because the decision of whether or not to buy free-range eggs is a decision in and of itself. … [W]e can be vegan and not have to choose between the lesser of the evils and which hens suffer more.”

A couple of months ago, I noted that the office of Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger in Israel had released an encouraging statement that seemed to mark the end of Israel’s imports of meat from animals killed by shackling and hoisting in South America. (The cruel slaughter method is no longer used in Israel or the U.S.) I was, however, skeptical because a similar forward-looking statement in 2008 was never enforced. This time around, it looks like the Chief Rabbinate’s plan will be enacted.

On June 18, Haaretz reported that “by 2011 the Chief Rabbinate will no longer certify [as kosher] meat from slaughterhouses that use shackle-and-hoist – a controversial method employed in almost all South American kosher slaughterhouses, which provide 80 percent of all the meat imported into Israel.” This is a major step forward, both because it means action will be taken within the next half-year and because business considerations (e.g., the fact that an overwhelming majority of Israel’s imported meat comes from the slaughterhouses in question) will not be allowed to determine what’s right.

This decision has far-reaching implications. Avi Blumenthal, assistant to Rabbi Metzger, said, “The chief rabbi believes this method is primitive and causes unnecessary pain and anguish to the animals. If the meat factories switch to more humane, kosher methods, we will certify their meat.” The Chief Rabbinate doesn’t have the authority to stop imports of the meat into Israel. Rather, it is specifically saying that it will not certify the meat as kosher because of the way animals are treated.

All too often in recent years, kosher certification authorities have contended that tza’ar ba’alei chayim (unnecessary animal suffering) is a distinct issue from kashrut and does not invalidate the kosher status of meat. In this situation, a hechsher is actually being revoked because of tza’ar ba’alei chayim (or perhaps the negative publicity it has caused), which means that it is not an independent consideration.

In the past, the kosher certification establishment has claimed that a statement like “Cruelty to animals means that meat from those animals is not kosher” is false. I have no rabbinic authority, but a logical extension of this new decision seems to make that statement true.

Haaretz quoted Rabbi Michael Melchior, the Danish-born former chief Orthodox rabbi of Norway, as saying that “lessening an animal’s suffering is a religious requirement from the Torah – just like the kosher requirement itself.”

Photo from Earth’s Promise community garden at the Kalisher Absorption Center.

The World Zionist Organization took major steps to green Israel by approving four resolutions put forth by the Green Zionist Alliance at the World Zionist Congress. The resolutions address a wide swath of environmental concerns, including water, energy and food justice. All of the votes were near unanimous, uniting all religious and political streams of Zionism for the cause of Israel’s environment.

“The resolutions will play a major role in helping shift an environmentally imperiled Israel onto a sustainable path, and provide a greener Israel for future generations,” said Dr. Richard Schwartz, a GZA delegate to the Congress.

The resolutions call for the WZO and its subsidiaries — Keren Kayemet L’Yisrael (KKL / Jewish National Fund in Israel) and the Jewish Agency For Israel (JAFI) — to install energy-generating solar panels and rainwater-savings systems on their buildings’ rooftops and to transition to energy-efficient lighting and fuel-efficient vehicles.

Additionally, JAFI is instructed to incorporate environmental education into the immigrant experience at absorption centers, and to develop community gardens at absorption centers for immigrants’ use.

“Growing food from the land is an incredibly potent way of connecting to the land,” said GZA President David Krantz, head of the GZA delegation to the Congress. “For the first time in the history of the Congress, we have brought the issue of food justice to the Zionist table.”

The resolutions will green the Congress itself by requiring the WZO to offset the carbon released into the atmosphere by the event and by the transportation of its delegates to Jerusalem. They also call for at least half of the food at the Congress to be procured from local and organic producers.

“Ensuring that we serve food that comes from locally grown and organic sources helps ensure sustainability for Israel,” said GZA delegate Aviva Melissa Frank.

The GZA resolutions were written by a team of environmentalists from Israel and North America.

“Because of the resolutions approved today, we will be helping to protect Israel’s land, water and air. This may be the best Congress for Israel’s environment since the KKL was founded in 1901,” Krantz said. “One of the resolutions declares that Jewish environmental education and support for local agriculture are globally important values within the Jewish community. It’s an amazing statement — and we’re backing it up with action.”

Birthright trips are a wonderful opportunity for 18- to 26-year-olds to travel to Israel for free. I sometimes receive e-mails from vegetarians and vegans who are going on Birthright trips and came across my old posts on heebnvegan via a Google search. Here is a compilation of the tips I give them.

Food Advice

• First and foremost, you should communicate with your trip organizers in advance to let them know about your dietary restrictions or food allergies. You should also let your trip’s staff know when you meet them on the first day.
• More often than not, you won’t have any trouble as a vegetarian or vegan. Still, I recommend taking some protein bars (sealed and unwrapped) with you just to be safe; double-check the rules for bringing food into a foreign country before heeding my advice. Meals on my trip varied greatly: Sometimes we had lavish buffets at fancy hotels, and sometimes we had a half-hour to grab falafel (or shwarma, for the meat-eaters) while walking through a village. But in addition to finding the best falafel and hummus you’ve ever had, you’ll find a lot of fresh veggies and creative salads at many of the meals. I also wound up having a lot of figs and other fresh fruit, nuts, potatoes, and couscous. All in all, it was likely a healthier diet than the mock-meat-centered diet I was eating in the U.S. at the time.
• Almost everyone speaks English, but it’s conceivable that there’d be some places you go to where you’d have to special-order and the people wouldn’t speak great English. Ask the trip staff for assistance in these situations.
• Most of the accouterments for falafel in a pita (or a laffa, which is another bread option), including tehini sauce (sesame-based), are vegan. Tzadiki sauce has dairy, and you should ask for your falafel without tzadiki. This is an easy accommodation.
• Vegetarian schnitzel (cutlet) is a popular alternative to chicken schnitzel. Think of it as though you were getting a veggie burger in a restaurant in the US. It might have some egg or dairy ingredients you don’t know about, but whether you eat it anyway depends on how strict a vegan you are.
• Shakshouka is a popular vegetarian dish, but it has a whole egg in it and isn’t vegan.
• The presence of meat might mean that some dishes are vegan! I realize that this is counter-intuitive for those who aren’t familiar with kashrut (the noun form of “kosher”). If you go to an all-kosher restaurant or are looking at packaged foods marked kosher, there are three categories: dairy, meat, and pareve. Meat and dairy cannot be mixed together (in individual dishes or even in the same meal) in kosher facilities, so if you know that a restaurant is certified kosher and that meat is present, the mashed potatoes are definitely dairy-free. (“Pareve” means no dairy or meat with regard to kashrut, but pareve foods might include eggs or fish, so “pareve” does not necessarily mean vegan.)

Miscellaneous Advice

• Some trips include camel rides. If you have an ethical objection to supporting a touristy business that likely overworks camels even in extreme heat, tell your trip staff up-front that you plan to avoid this activity.
• You’re allowed to bring two bags (not including a carry-on bag) with you. Find a way to bring only one. You don’t want to be schlepping two around with you the whole time.
• On my trip, we arrived in Israel in the early morning (Israeli time) and had a full day of activity, and then a lot of us wanted to stay up at night for social reasons. I got one hour of sleep on the plane because I was excited, which meant that I was quite exhausted on Day 1 (and that exhaustion stayed with me for the rest of the trip). One woman sitting near me on the plane took an over-the-counter sleeping pill and slept through the entire flight, and she was raring to go. I normally avoid pills whenever possible, but I think she had the right idea. Use the flight to Israel to sleep, because the rest of the 10-day trip is push push push and you’ll regret not sleeping on the plane.

The Green Zionist Alliance (GZA) is seeking volunteers to help write a food-justice resolution for the World Zionist Congress, scheduled to be held this coming June in Jerusalem. The Congress has jurisdiction over the spending and policies of the World Zionist Organization, the Jewish Agency and Keren Kayemet L’Yisrael (KKL-JNF). If you’d like to participate this year in writing a food-justice resolution, please contact David Krantz – chairperson [at] greenzionism [dot] org.

For information on the GZA’s work in Israel through the World Zionist Congress, click here.

For information on the resolutions that the GZA successfully passed at the last Congress, click here.

Edible wild plants have been an essential part of the local diet here in the Galilee going back to the stone age hunters and gatherers.  I have learned from neighbors in the nearby Bedouin villages which plants are good to eat, where to find them, and how to prepare them.  One of the staples, which is considered a seasonal delicacy, is wild chicory – known in Arabic as elet, and in Hebrew as olesh.  It can be found around the edges of fields – a low-growing starburst of scalloped leaves.  And it is considered to be extremely healthy – good for “cleaning the blood”, as my Bedouin friends have explained.

Going out and gathering is not as commonly practiced in the traditional Arab cultures of the Galilee as it once was – yet the taste for elet remains.  Now enterprising farmers have started to cultivate elet and other edible wild plants, and sell them in the local Arab green grocers.

Since it was too muddy to go out picking, I bought my elet in Kfar Manda, and cooked it up the traditional way – washing, chopping it, cooking it in boiling water for a few minute to take out the bitterness, then sautéing it with lots of chopped onion in a profusion of olive oil.  It did not disappoint!

Next week I’ll be leading an edible wild plants cooking day with a Bedouin guide here in the Galilee.  For more information, see my website www.galileecuisine.co.il

I’m stuffed. Not from my Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family in the US – although everything on the table was delicious – but from five days of intellectual, spiritual, and gastronomical nourishment while participating in Hazon and Heschel’s first Israel Sustainable Food Tour. From November 15th though 19th, twenty-seven foodies and I explored Israel from the perspective of sustainable food. We met with farmers, chefs, community gardeners, a permaculture expert, a food scientist, volunteers at an innovative soup kitchen, the founder of a food co-op, an expert on food insecurity in Israel, and many other passionate people who shared their experiences working on sustainable food issues throughout the country.

Our group, fearlessly led by Natasha Aronson of Hazon and Jeremy Benstein of The Heschel Center for Environmental Learning and Leadership, was an incredible mix of individuals with varied backgrounds on food and environmental issues: farmers, nutritionists, public health analysts, journalists, CSA coordinators, and many more.  The stimulating conversations I had with the other participants were certainly one of the most memorable parts of the tour.  And on the final day, we joined over three hundred people at the first annual Israel Sustainable Food Conference in Tel Aviv.

Over the next few weeks, as I continue to digest this fantastic experience, I’ll be sharing some of the highlights of the trip here on The Jew and the Carrot. One theme that I had not anticipated, and that I found most moving throughout the tour, was the role that memories played in many people’s understanding of food sustainability. It was touching to hear how sharing memories through food – often memories of an older generation, a simpler time – was a means for putting sustainability in action. Our first meal together, at the Eucalyptus Restaurant in Jerusalem, included a cooking demonstration with chef Sofian Ayash, who explained that his culinary degree came from MMK University – “my mother’s kitchen”. Thus, his dishes often reflect his earliest memories and knowledge he gained from cooking with his mother. As the trip progressed, I realized that the group and I were creating our own memories – with each other, with Israel, with the phenomenal meals we experienced – just as others shared their own memories of food with us. Our understanding of sustainability was undoubtedly affected by the people we met, the sites we took in, the stories we listened to, and the foods we tasted. Powerful nourishment, indeed.

Photo by Evan Namerow, taken at the Machaneh Yehudah outdoor market – “the shuk” – in Jerusalem.

Do you love your CSA (or Tuv Ha’Haretz) but also want sustainable products that are not found locally where you live?  Things like olive oil and dates are local to the Mediterranean Sea – not New England.  But for folks in the greater New York area committed to sustainable agriculture, some of our CSAs have recently partnered with a new company that supports small-scale farming and economic development in the Negev Region of Israel.

Negev Nectars, a new business that launched last week, will be bringing gourmet, sustainably produced foods to CSAs (and Tuv Ha’Haretz) to the United States.  Negev Nectars members will be sent olive oil, jams, chutneys, honey, dried herbs and other unique products (check them out here) three times a year just before Hanukkah, Passover and Rosh Hashanah.  Negev Nectars can be shipped all over the U.S., although your share can be picked up at participating sites.  Currently Negev Nectars can be picked up at the Tuv Ha’Haretz in White Plains, NY and Forest Hills, NY with additional sites coming soon in New York and New Jersey.

A Negev Nectars membership is more than just an investment in Israeli farms employing responsible growing practices; it is also an investment in the future of the country and the region. Farmers such as Doron Akiva, the olive grower, and those at the highly regarded organic kibbutz, Neot Smadar, irrigate their fields and orchards with brackish (salty) well water when the plants can handle it, and employ the most up-to-date water saving technology for desert conditions.

The ethos behind Negev Nectars is akin to what’s going on in the sustainable food world in the US “For those of us not living in California, local organic olive oil is impossible to find,” said Jeffrey Yoskowitz, Director of Operations and Marketing. “Many of our products are specific to the Mediterranean and the desert, and supplement the fresh produce from farmers markets and CSAs very nicely.” He added that no matter the distance, you should get to know your farmer.

I took an excursion this week to the Mahane Yehuda outdoor market in Jerusalem to get a taste of the space days before a major Jewish holiday. Below you will find a sampling of pictures from this trip.  Perhaps for some of you it will be something of a trip down memory lane. For those who have never been there, these pictures do not do it justice.

Shana Tova,

Cecily

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