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Park Slope Food Coop boycott removes Arab-founded products from shelves
A vote by the Park Slope Food Coop to boycott Israeli products took effect immediately after passing on May 26. Several items produced by Arab-founded companies or multi-ethnic teams were removed from shelves as a result.
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The Park Slope Food Coop held a vote on May 26 that drew over 7,000 members and passed with 67 percent in favor of boycotting Israeli products. The measure went into effect at once, and affected items were removed from shelves by the next morning. One brand removed was Seed + Mill tahini.
Its founder and CEO stated that the product is made at a co-packing facility in northern Israel owned by Arab Muslim Israelis and employing Arab, Jewish, Christian, and Druze workers.
Supply chain details The same facility produces tahini for both domestic and export markets. The founder said the workforce operates in a multicultural setting and that no evidence of an apartheid system exists at the site. Another product removed was Equal Exchange Olive Oil, produced by a nonprofit organization led by Arab and Jewish women.
A rival tahini brand formerly owned by an Israeli-Arab entrepreneur was also taken off the shelves.
+ Mill said the company has supplied the coop since roughly 2019 and described the decision as having a personal effect on team morale. The founder added that the boycott affects workers and business owners rather than the Israeli government. The founder noted that the company began as a stall in Chelsea Market in 2016 and is not positioned as representing any single culture or political viewpoint.
