Organic eating, shopping and shipping the Israeli way

While the most serious of green folks will adhere to the 100 Mile Diet, there will always be things you cannot make or buy from local ingredients: olive oil, for instance, cannot be bought locally in most states in America, or in any province in Ontario. It must be shipped in through a personal order, by plane or ship then long-haul truck. Since most of us are not that idealistic, there are a growing number of online services that help you order healthful and organic food wherever you may live. The idea is picking up in Israel but the US model is still the global standard.

Some of America’s companies have a direct line to Israel. Abe’s Market for instance is partially run out of Israel (see Abe’s team here) although it caters to the American market for sales. Advertising “Natural Products for the Thoughtful Shopper”, you can find anything at Abe’s from organic cotton socks to Israeli-made natural Dead Sea salts. Currently the company only ships within the US, but they are looking for novel and new “organic” and natural products to add to their supply. Drop them a line if you have products to sell from Israel.

In another twist on Israel and the organics market is the company Negev Nectars, a company that rounds together the best of the organic products from the economically depressed Negev Region of Israel and then ships them to the US during the Jewish holiday times in a gift pack. Find organic honey and wine among the gift packages, and novel items such as Israeli organic olive oil – products not available in most US states. While Israel wine or olive oil might not be better than California-made wine and olive oil, there is a certain connection to the Holy Land that people enjoy when they buy these Israeli-derived products – especially when the wine is kosher. Proceeds from sales also go to support farmers and producers in a region of Israel that needs your support.

There are also novel and specialty organic markets that plan on servicing countries like Israel in the near future, and the organic food pet market is one that severely lacking in Israel. Due to the limited size of the import market in Israel one doesn’t find near the range and quality of organic food products made in and delivered to US addresses. I just spoke with Mr Chewy, an online pet retailer, and this company plans on shipping *very soon* to countries like Israel. Specialized in pet food and natural pet products, among other pet supplies, the company sells a unique range of organic dog food, and items that focus on extending your pet’s health. A lot of it comes dried to save on shipping costs which makes perfect sense. This company also sets a global example of how to donate profits to charities like animal shelters. I love that.

While some might find the idea of shipping high quality natural or organic pet food and supplies around the world a green turn off, some competitive dog breeders spend more money on feeding their pets than they do children. For them it’s a no brainer to spend hundreds of dollars a month on supplies for their pets.

For interest’s sake, I like sites like these just for browsing through. While you might find it crazy to spend so much money on natural dog food sites like these to give you ideas on how to DIY at home. Some companies list ingredients, and with the consultation of a dietician or your vet, you can whip together your own formulas for people and pets using the most local ingredients on hand, with the most local tools you can find in Israel –– your hands.