Both of Israel’s chief rabbis step down at end of their 10-year terms with no successors appointed, leaving the rabbinate without top leadership.

By Pesach Benson, TPS

A political struggle has left Israel without chief rabbis for the first time in the country’s history.

Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau and Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef stepped down from their positions on Monday as their 10-year terms expired.

Israeli chief rabbis serve 10-year terms and often represent Israel abroad. The Chief Rabbinate has jurisdiction over issues of personal status, such as marriage, divorce and conversions, as well as burials, kosher certification, holy sites, rabbinical courts and religious seminaries known as yeshivas.

Chief rabbis, including for local municipalities, are elected by an election assembly consisting of 80 rabbis representing local religious councils and 70 public officials representing the Knesset and local authorities. By law, replacements are supposed to be elected at least 21 days before the end of their term.

The chief rabbis, local rabbis and public officials on the national and local levels each select a certain number of members to the assembly. But disagreements over the assembly’s makeup persisted and the Ministry of Religious Affairs never convened the assembly.

A vote was originally supposed to be held in August 2023. But the Knesset postponed the vote, at the behest of Religious Affairs Minister Michael Malkieli who argued that the timing would interfere with municipal elections scheduled for October 31.

Critics accused Malkieli of trying to get individuals onto the assembly with more favorable views for certain candidates for the Chief Rabbi, the 15-member Chief Rabbinate Council which oversees the chief rabbinate’s day-to-day affairs, and local rabbinic authorities.

But the municipal elections were postponed to February when war with Hamas broke out.

Matters became more complicated when the Attorney General said both Rabbis Lau and Yosef could not be involved in selecting members of the statutory body over a conflict of interest.

Both come from rabbinic families and have brothers seeking positions in the rabbinate, raising accusations of nepotism. Rabbi David Lau’s father, Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, was Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi from 1993-2003. Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef’s father, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, was Chief Sephardi Rabbi from 1973-1983.

In another twist, the High Court of Justice in January ruled that women were under-represented in the election assembly ordered the Chief Rabbis to include women among their selections.

No clear front runners to replace Rabbis Lau and Yosef have emerged.

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Israel has one of the highest rates of vegetarianism and veganism in the world.

By Sveta Listratov, TPS

Israel’s Health Ministry gave regulatory approval to the world’s first cultivated beef steaks on Wednesday, which a leading culinary expert said places Israel at the forefront of foodtech.

The approval was given to Aleph Farms, a Rehovot-based startup.

“This news holds paramount economic meaning as it revolves around leading companies in the field of food tech, with Israel taking the forefront on a global scale,” Eli Helman, a culinary expert told the Tazpit Press Service. Helman founded Datilishes, an online community of over 80,000 that promotes kosher food.

“Of course, for those who abstain from meat, this is going to be a convenient solution. Think of a gathering of friends cooking over BBQ, including vegetarians, who can come together and share the pleasant culinary experience.” Helman added.

Aleph Farms also received the blessings of Israeli Chief Rabbi David Lau on Wednesday. He issued a religious ruling recognizing the cultured beef as “pareve” which means the food is not considered meat or dairy. Observant Jews do not mix meat and dairy and wait a period of time between eating one and the other.

“This innovation now enables those adhering to Jewish tradition to enjoy a cheeseburger, an experience previously forbidden for them,” Hellman explained.

But the Chief Rabbi’s ruling comes with caveats. “One might not be able to tell the difference between the real meat and the cultured one. For this reason, the chief rabbi prohibits advertising the cultured meat by Aleph Cuts with dairy products,” Helman said.

Israel has one of the highest rates of vegetarianism and veganism in the world. An estimated 13 percent of Israel’s population is vegetarian, meaning they don’t eat meat, fowl, fish or the byproducts of animals killed for food. Around five percent of Israelis are vegans, who maintain a stricter diet — refraining from all animal byproducts such as dairy, eggs and honey.

Cultured meat, also known as lab-grown meat, is produced through a process called cellular agriculture or cell-based meat production.

A small sample of animal cells, typically muscle cells, are taken from a live animal through a biopsy. These cells serve as the starting point for the production of cultured meat. The isolated cells are then placed in a controlled environment, such as a culture medium containing nutrients, growth factors, and a scaffold to mimic the natural conditions within an animal’s body.

When the cells become more distinct, they are differentiated into specific cell types, such as muscle cells, fat cells, and connective tissue cells. The differentiated cells are then assembled into three-dimensional structures resembling the composition of meat. The cells are then left to grow before being harvested.

Cultured meat is touted as environmentally friendly, more efficient to produce, and offering greater food security.

“This approval makes Israel the first country in the world to approve beef cell culture as food and a world leader in the field while protecting public health,” said Dr. Ziva Hamma, head of the ministry’s Department of Food Risk Management. She said the cultured beefsteaks passed after being examined for allergens, toxicology, nutritional composition and microbiological and chemical safety, among other issues.

Helman told TPS the ministry’s approval will help normalize cultured meat and vegetarian lifestyles.

“I don’t foresee cultured meat entirely replacing traditional meat, but I believe it will gradually become part of the broader culinary landscape,” he said.

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