Food insecurity affects millions of people worldwide. It is especially significant in Israel, where relief often comes from Leket Israel, the national food bank. Translated from Hebrew, leket means “gleanings.”
The concept of sharing a portion of the harvest with the poor comes directly from the Torah. Leket Israel was created in 2009, thanks to the efforts of a St. Louisan, the late Cheri Fox. In the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, poverty and food insecurity have increased in Israel. The St. Louis Jewish community has continued to support Leket.
On Nov. 17, Sally Poolat, Leket Israel’s Southeastern U.S. director, will be in St. Louis to provide supporters with an update on her organization’s work. Poolat recently offered the Jewish Light a preview of what she will share during her upcoming visit.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 11% of Americans are living in poverty. What is the comparable statistic in Israel?
About 20% of the Israeli population is at the poverty line. They don’t have the ability to put nutritious, healthy meals on the table for the elderly, for Holocaust survivors and where children are being raised in socioeconomic deficiencies. They include our battered women’s shelters, homeless shelters and soup kitchens where people just don’t have a hot, good meal every day. We feed all Israelis, regardless of religion, race, gender. They include Arabs, Jews and Christians. The Jewish population we cover is upwards of 80%.
Have you found Americans are surprised to learn that Israel has a significant poverty problem?
Yes, 100%. People are surprised that we have that amount of poverty here. We’re the ‘start-up nation,’ right? There is a population in Israel that is doing extremely well. To offer a sense of what we do, prior to Oct. 7, 2023, we were feeding about 240,000 people a week. That increased significantly when the war started by 41%. And we now feed 330,000 people a week.
How did the Hamas attack on Oct. 7 and subsequent conflict impact your ability to feed the hungry?
When the terrorists came in, they burned down farms, they burned down fields, they burned down tractors, they burned down all the equipment these farmers had to do their jobs. These farmers didn’t have access to their land. Once they did, their labor force was virtually gone. They were workers from Thailand and Palestinians. That stopped. Previously, our team would get the surplus from these farmers. They were unable to pick what they had and plant what they needed to for the next season. The first need was to get laborers, to get people to come down to help them. That’s one of the things that we did.
What type of food does Leket Israel focus on providing?
We specifically provide meals that are nutritious. We have a certified nutritionist who helps coordinate hundreds of programs a year to teach people how to eat properly and healthy, because typically people that don’t have enough money to buy fruits and vegetables. They typically buy things like pastas and chips that are filling, but not healthy. Our mission is to provide healthy and nutritious meal to those people that need them.
What can members of the St. Louis Jewish community do to support Leket Israel’s mission and work?
It would be very generous of the people of St. Louis if they could donate money to Leket. Ninety cents goes of every dollar goes towards helping the poor. That’s very high for a non-profit. The other 10 cents goes to keeping the lights on and the trucks fueled. Donations are important for us. Also, come to Israel to show your support or volunteer at Leket.
The 2023 Jewish Federation of St. Louis’ community impact investment in Leket Israel was $24,000. Another $3,600 allocation to Leket came from the Staenberg Family Foundation and $18,300 came from endowments and other grants. Information is available here on volunteering to support Israeli farmers.
