Netanyahu joins vegetarian trend
Prime minister's official residence to serve meatless meals once a week as part of campaign launched in Israel a year ago. 'My father was one of the first vegans in Israel,' PM's wife reveals
From now on, the prime minister has announced, his official residence will serve meatless meals once a week.
The house, on Jerusalem's Balfour Street, serves as the Netanyahu family's residence on most days of the week. The house's staff and security guards dine there as well, and many meetings are held around the living room table.
Last week, marking a year since the launch of the Meatless Monday campaign in Israel, Benjamin and Sara Netanyahu met with the project's leader in the country, former news anchor Miki Haimovich, to inform her that their residence would be joining the initiative.
The couple told Haimovich that they hardly eat meat anyway, and that their son Yair became vegetarian two years ago.
"I come from a home which was highly aware of the issue," Sara Netanyahu said. "My father was one of the first vegans in Israel. I am interested in helping raise additional people's awareness and sensitivity to the suffering of animals."
During the meeting, the prime minister browsed through the book "Eating Animals" by Jonathan Safran Foer, which confronts readers with the consequences of eating meat. He said he was also influenced by the book "From Animals into Gods: A Brief History of Humankind" by Dr. Yuval Noah Harari.
"I read there about animals' cognition and about their awareness to the suffering of other animals," he said.
Haimovich told the couple about the heath aspects of not consuming meat. "Bibi said he mostly connects to the issue of preventing cruelty to animals," she concluded.
