Written by: Aaron Katsman | April 22, 2009
Israel is not your average homogeneous country and Israel’s cuisine is not your average homogeneous cuisine. Israel is nation of “olim” (the Hebrew term for Jewish immigrants to Israel) from over 80 countries around the world, and its remarkable ethnic variety is reflected in its colorful cuisine. There are however, a couple of major categories of Israeli cuisine. We can basically categorize it into Ashkenazi food and Sephardic food. Ashkenazi Jews are those of Eastern and Western European stock, and Sephardic basically refers to “oriental” Jews from the Middle East and North Africa.
One of the ubiquitous foods from Sephardic lands is of course falafel, which is one of the most basic culinary experiences in Israel. Falafel, in the variety eaten in most Middle Eastern countries including Israel, are bean balls made of ground chickpeas with spices that are deep fried. They are commonly put into pita bread along with salad and houmos or tehina sauce. It is eaten either as a fast food meal, or as an appetizer in a multicourse meal. It is nearly impossible to avoid falafel in Israel, as you will find it on nearly every street you decide to stroll down.
Possibly even more of a staple than even falafel is homous, a bean paste made from chickpeas, with olive oil or spices on top (commonly zatar, which is a combination of sesame and thyme). It is usually eaten by dipping pita bread into the homous, and is a cherished staple food all over the Middle East. I would be willing to bet a large sum of money that every home in Israel has a container of homous in the fridge.
Another common sephardic food is couscous, originally from the Maghreb countries of North Africa, such as Morrocco and Algeria. Couscous is made up of tiny balls rolled from semolina wheat that are then covered with wheat flour. Similarly to rice, it is utilized as the basis for a wide variety of dishes, with flavour coming from vegetables, meat, sauces, or spices.
One of my personal favorite Israeli snacks is malawach, which was brought to Israel by Yemenite immigrants. It is made of thin pastry layers piled on top of each other, giving it a very dense texture. It is thick and dense texture combined with its soft puffiness make it very chewy, similar to Indian Nan bread but perhaps a little tougher. It is usually drenched in butter or margarine, and is often served with a spicy tomato salsa.
Also very popular is Burekas, a Jewish variation of the Turkish pastry “burak”, filled with cheese, potato, meat, spinach or eggplant.
Like Sephardic dishes, Ashkenazi cuisine often overlaps with non-Jewish cuisine in its country of origin. One of the most basic Ashkenazi dishes is stuffed cabbage, a common meal in Eastern Europe. The cabbages are filled with minced onions and ground meat, and baked in tomato sauce. The Jewish variation of this dish obviously avoids pork in favor of beef and other meats, and brown sugar with lemon juice is added to the tomato sauce to create a sweet and sour flavour.
Another extrememly common food from the Ashekenazi tradition is challa. Challa is the special bread eaten on the Sabbath. It is a twisted bread made with eggs and no milk (kosher dietary laws forbid the mixing of milk and meat). This type of challa Sabbath bread originated in Eastern Europe in the 15th century. This is one of the most cherished Jewish foods, and is therefore a ubiquitous part of life in Israel.
There are several other factors affecting the Israeli diet, including the tendency to emphasize lunch as the main meal rather than dinner (this is the norm in much of the Mediterranean region). And of course the Kosher laws of Judaism steer Israeli food away from pork products, from the combining of dairy products and meat, from shellfish, and other violations of kosher laws. And of course Israel is not a brand new country anymore, so there has naturally been a fusion of different traditions to create new dishes that are uniquely Israeli, or new variations that are uniquely Israeli. Israeli food is as dynamic as the nation of Israel, and the Jewish people themselves.
Written by: Aaron Katsman | November 29, 2007
Aaron Katsman
www.IsraelNewsletter.com
G. Willi-Food International Ltd(WILC), one of our favorites here at Israelnewsletter.com, reported a 21% increase in revenues for Q3 ‘07 versus the same quarter ‘06. As expected profit decreased as the company suffered from a drop in margins. The worldwide increase in dairy prices impacted G. Willi’s Q3 gross margins, as they declined to 20% compared to 27% in the same period a year ago.
Mr. Zwi Williger, President and COO of Willi-Food commented, “Third quarter results are in line with our expectations for the period. In this period, nearly all of our shortfalls can be attributed to gross margin decline in our dairy business. As previously stated, Willi Food and the global dairy industry continues to experience cost pressures due to weather related problems, reduced milk production, cessation of EU dairy export subsidies at the same time that consumption and demand for dairy has increased in growing emerging markets. These factors have negatively impacted Willi Food’s near term sales and gross margins on cheeses and other products.”
Mr. Williger continued, “While we believe that this trend shall continue through the remainder of the year, we anticipate that the cost of raw food materials will stabilize by mid-2008. In the interim, we are successfully leveraging our infrastructure, hedging our strategic direction through smart acquisitions and setting the stage for growth in 2008.”
The company continues to grow and we continue to like this for the long-term. With limited volume the stock price is subject to large swings. Long-term investors should keep their eye focused on the long-term regarding this stock. As they continue to execute their business plan, I would expect the stock to continue to move up.
Please see our Disclaimer HERE.
Disclosure: Author has a position in WILC. He holds no position in any other stock mentioned, as of 11/29/07.
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Aaron Katsman is the lead portfolio manager for the Israel Growth Portfolio and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. For more information, go to www.israelnewsletter.com or call 1-888-327-6179, or email aaron@profile-financial.com.
Written by: Aaron Katsman | October 22, 2007
Aaron Katsman
www.IsraelNewsletter.com
I was never big on bragging, well maybe I was, just never had much of a chance, but today’s news that G. Willi Food Intl (WILC) signed a binding term sheet with the owners of a Russian dairy distributor was predicted. The distributor is a leading supplier and importer of dairy products in Russia, and together they will form a new joint company. Willi Food would hold a 51% interest in the new company. This reminds me of the Philosopher Kings classic lyrics, “I am the man, that’s what I am. I’m a straight shooter with a master plan.” Okay, to all you jokesters out there (and you know who you are) who are now going to remind me of some of my less-than-stellar analysis, give me a break and let me have my fun.
For ‘07, analysts think this distributor will sell roughly 36,000 tons of cheese products to a base of over 1,000 customers in Russia and generate an estimated $120 million in sales. According to HLB Prime Advice, a Russian appraisal company, the distributor is a leading distributor of all cheese types in Russia and the biggest supplier of hard cheeses such as Gouda and Edam to this market. I love my GOUDA cheese! Nothing like watching football with some Gouda and crackers. This follows on what I have said in the past: that G. Willi is making a big push into the Russian food market. It’s become clear that with growing wealth and more disposable income, Russian consumers have created a large demand for imported, premium products. G. Willi can help satisfy that demand with their broad selection of healthy dairy products and other foodstuff.
Mr. Zwi Williger, President and COO of Willi Food commented, “We are very excited about this transaction, which represents a bold step for Willi Food as we continue to expand our global footprint. According to market data, over 650,000 tons of cheeses are consumed in Russia each year of which roughly 50% is imported. We believe that NewCo will provide a well-developed distribution platform for Willi Food and its subsidiaries to drive market demand for dairy products in all categories including premium branded products, kosher and healthy living styled dairy products, as well as other categories.”
As I write this, my local Dolphins fan (ouch), Zack “Facebook“Miller, asks,” What’s their competitive moat?” First of all, what the heck is a Moat? Anyway, the answer lies in Arkadi Gaydamak. He owns the parent company Willi Food Investments and he is the largest egg distributor in Russia. He himself is a huge distribution channel, and with this new deal, look out. Willi will carve out nice marketshare in the Russian food market.
How is that for some Moat!
If you are looking for a small food company that’s about to explode onto the global scene, have a long look at G. Willi. The stock has taken a hit, and looks attractive as a long-term investment.
Please see our Disclaimer HERE.
Disclosure: Author has a position in WILC as of 10/22/07. Author has no holdings in any other stock mentioned.
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Aaron Katsman is the lead portfolio manager for the Israel Growth Portfolio and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. For more information, go to www.israelnewsletter.com or call 1-888-327-6179, or email aaron@profile-financial.com.
Written by: Aaron Katsman | October 7, 2007
By Aaron Katsman
www.IsraelNewsletter.com
I have received many requests by loyal Newsletter readers, to help clarify last week’s announcement of a non-binding memorandum of understanding to buy 51% of the Russian eggs and slaughterhouse company owned by Arcadi Gaydamak(also majority owner of G.Willi) for an estimated $32.6 million.
As it was a holiday week in Israel, there were conflicting reports as to which entity was the potential buyer. G.Willi(WILC) or Willi Food Investments( the parent company which trades on the Tel-Aviv exchange). Thanks to alert reader Amit Chokshi, who was correct to note that it was indeed the Israeli company, who may do to the deal.
The question many have asked me is if there will be any impact for WILC shareholders?
I think the answer is a resounding “Yes”.
G. Willi will now enjoy a huge distribution channel in Russia for all of their food business. G. Willi had no penetration into this market and if their parent company does a deal in Russia, it will certainly help G. Willi gain a foothold there.
I actually think US investors are underestimating this potential and the stock is still trading at very attractive levels.
Please see our Disclaimer HERE.
Disclosure: Author’s fund is long WILC as of 10/07/07.
Like what you see? Sign up to receive daily updates from IsraelNewsletter here
Aaron Katsman is the lead portfolio manager for the Israel Growth Portfolio and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. For more information, go to www.israelnewsletter.com or call 1-888-327-6179, or email aaron@profile-financial.com.
