Kashrut? Vegan do it
In her piece, Goodbye to kosher butchers if we all go vegan (25th January), Keren David worries that, without partaking in meat, dairy and egg products, Jews will lose some of their Jewish identity.
However, being a Jewish vegan can greatly enhance your Jewish identity, rather than lead you to disconnect from it. Meals during the chagim take on an extra level of spirituality in our house as we search to find ethical alternatives to fish heads, challah (typically made with eggs), and the Seder-night shank bone, which I replace with roasted beetroot that “bleeds”. And this has been validated by rabbis worldwide, and is certainly a conversation starter.
Under modern, industrialised conditions animals are today reared, which clearly violates Jewish values, many rabbis question whether much of our traditional diet can even be considered kosher.
Now is the time to embrace the growing demand for food products that align with our values. Who says it is goodbye to chopped liver and chicken soup? See jvs.org.uk for loads of vegan versions of these favourites.