Thanks for this post, Leah. It does seem that food is a central part of Jewish experience. There's a growing interest among Jews -- particularly young Jews -- in connecting our love of food with efforts to address food insecurity, food injustice, global hunger, and labor abuses in the food industry. These efforts have even evolved into a movement: The New Jewish Food Movement. A few examples of what's happening: Hekhsher Tzedek is a new certification of Kosher food built upon the commitment to protect workers, animals, and the Earth in food production. Organizations like Hazon are working on sustainable agriculture and maximizing local, organic food production in Jewish communal spaces and beyond. American Jewish World Service (AJWS) recently launched a campaign, Fighting Hunger from the Ground Up, to support the efforts of grassroots organizations in Africa, Asia and the Americas that are developing sustainable and creative solutions to alleviating hunger, advocating for indigenous communities' land and water rights, and equipping women with skills to produce their own food as a way to break cycles of poverty and oppression. So, the Jewish connection to food extends far beyond bubbe's chicken soup with matzah balls. Finally ... tomorrow, October 16th, is World Food Day. Many people in the Jewish community are putting their values into practice by taking action to address the global food insecurity crisis. You can join AJWS in TAKING ACTION, too.
Thanks for this post, Leah. It does seem that food is a central part of Jewish experience. There's a growing interest among Jews -- particularly young Jews -- in connecting our love of food with efforts to address food insecurity, food injustice, global hunger, and labor abuses in the food industry. These efforts have even evolved into a movement: The New Jewish Food Movement. A few examples of what's happening: Hekhsher Tzedek is a new certification of Kosher food built upon the commitment to protect workers, animals, and the Earth in food production. Organizations like Hazon are working on sustainable agriculture and maximizing local, organic food production in Jewish communal spaces and beyond. American Jewish World Service (AJWS) recently launched a campaign, Fighting Hunger from the Ground Up, to support the efforts of grassroots organizations in Africa, Asia and the Americas that are developing sustainable and creative solutions to alleviating hunger, advocating for indigenous communities' land and water rights, and equipping women with skills to produce their own food as a way to break cycles of poverty and oppression. So, the Jewish connection to food extends far beyond bubbe's chicken soup with matzah balls. Finally ... tomorrow, October 16th, is World Food Day. Many people in the Jewish community are putting their values into practice by taking action to address the global food insecurity crisis. You can join AJWS in TAKING ACTION, too.