CJPME Factsheet 239, created April 2024: This factsheet provides an overview of Sabra, a US-based company known for its Middle Eastern-style food products like Hummus, jointly owned by PepsiCo and the Israeli multinational food corporation, Strauss Group. It delves into the reasons behind the call to boycott Sabra due to the Strauss Group's financial support for the Israeli military, particularly the Golani and Givati Brigades, which have been implicated in human rights violations against Palestinians. The document highlights instances of activism and campaigns, particularly in Canadian universities, urging the cessation of support for Sabra until it severs ties with the Strauss Group and disengages from complicity in Israel's crimes against Palestinians.

What is Sabra?

Sabra is a US-based company which produces Middle Eastern-style food products including Hummus. Sabra is jointly owned by PepsiCo and the Strauss Group, an Israeli multinational food and beverage corporation.[1]

Why boycott Sabra?

The Strauss Group, chaired by Ofra Strauss, has a pattern of providing funding and support to the Israeli military, including the elite Golani and Givati Brigades.[2] Any purchase of Sabra products generates income for the Strauss Group, which then supports the Israeli military and its human rights violations against Palestinians.

Due to the Strauss Group’s support for the Israeli army, Sabra is considered an important boycott target for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement (BDS),[3] which was launched by Palestinian civil society in 2005. BDS seeks to use non-violent forms of economic pressure against companies that are complicit in Israel’s oppression of Palestinians.

How does the Strauss Group support the Israeli military?

Support for the Israeli military is a long-held value of the Strauss Group, which has publicly stated that part of its approach to corporate responsibility is to provide Israeli soldiers with “support, to enhance their quality of life and service conditions, and sweeten their special moments.”[4] In response to boycott campaigns at Princeton University and Chicago's DePaul University, Ofra Strauss affirmed: “For us, Israeli soldiers are not army; Israeli soldiers are our kids … And when children of this country are in need, we will be there." Any boycott on our product is [a vote] against all the good things that we do."[5]

The Israeli military’s Golani and Givati brigades receive support from the Strauss Group under their Adopt a Warrior Program,[6] including care packages, books, games, sports, and recreational equipment for soldiers.[7] This support used to be publicly listed on their English website, but it was removed in 2010 in response to criticism.[8]

The Golani and Givati Brigades are notorious for their human rights violations and war crimes in Lebanon and Occupied Palestine.[9] In 1982, soldiers of the Golani Brigade assisted the Lebanese Phalangist militias in massacring between 2000-3500 Palestinian refugees and Lebanese civilians in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camp.[10] The Givati Brigade was involved in the ground offensive against Palestinians in Gaza during the 2008-2009 Operation Cast Lead.[11] Israeli soldiers participated in killing more than 1400 Palestinians, including 350 children and committed war crimes, as highlighted by the UN in the 2009 Goldstone Report.[12] In its 2023 financial report, Strauss Group President & CEO Shai Babad affirmed that Strauss continues to support the Israeli army: “We continue to pray for the safe return of all the hostages soon and strengthen the soldiers of the IDF and the security forces.”[13]

As of 2024, the Strauss Group lists on its website many partnerships with Israeli organizations, including “Friends of IDF,”[14] which works directly with the Israeli military to distribute funds to soldiers.[15]

Are there any ties between Chairwoman Ofra Strauss and the Israeli military?

Strauss Group Chairwoman Ofra Strauss is also a board member of the HESEG Foundation for Lone Soldiers, an organization founded by Canadians which encourages foreigners to join the Israeli military.[16] The HESEG Foundation offers financial incentives for “lone soldiers” to enlist in the Israeli army by offering scholarships and grants to study in Israel.[17] Strauss also served as part of the Association for the Wellbeing of Israel’s Soldiers,[18] which provides donations to fund “welfare activities for the benefit of the soldiers,”[19] who commit human rights violations against Palestinians.

How have Canadians called for a boycott of Sabra?

In Canada, the boycott of Sabra has been led by student groups in universities, who see it as a way to advance Palestinian human rights. In 2014, student groups at the University of Ottawa including Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR), the Palestinian Student Association (PSA), and Young Jews for Social Justice (YJSJ), ran a campaign calling for Sabra to be banned from campus.[20]

Similarly, in 2022, Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR) at McGill University launched a stickering campaign to pressure McGill food and dining services to remove Sabra hummus from its cafeterias.[21] While the products were initially removed, Sabra hummus unfortunately did return to the McGill Cafeteria several months later.

When will the boycott strategy end?

The boycott of Sabra will end once it is no longer owned by the Strauss Group, and thus is no longer complicit in the oppression, violence and war crimes committed by Israel against Palestinians.

[1] “University of Manchester removes Sabra Hummus from campus shelves after BDS campaign.” The New Arab. February 2018

[2] Landau, Susan. “Say no to settlement products and sabra hummus.” Mondoweiss. February 14, 2012. Accessed April 10, 2024.

[3] “Know what to boycott,” Palestinian BDS National Committee, Accessed April 24, 2024, https://bdsmovement.net/get-involved/what-to-boycott

[4] Vlazna, Vacy. “Why boycott Strauss?” The Palestine Chronicle. March 11, 2012. Accessed April 10, 2024

[5] Keren Blankfeld. “Hummus Hullabaloo.” Forbes. December 30, 2010. Accessed April 11, 2024.

[6] Landau, Susan. “Say no to settlement products and sabra hummus.” Mondoweiss. February 14, 2012. Accessed April 10, 2024.

[7] Bullimore, Kim. “Victory for Australia’s boycott campaign as charges of blockading chocolate store dropped.” Electronic Intifada. July 27, 2012. Accessed April 10, 2024.

[8] Tobia, Michal. “Strauss Group removes support for IDF from website.” The Jerusalem Post. November 18, 2010. AcCessed April 24, 2024.

[9] Bullimore, Kim. “Victory for Australia’s boycott campaign as charges of blockading chocolate store dropped.” Electronic Intifada. July 27, 2012. Accessed April 10, 2024.

[10] “Sabra and Shatila massacre: What happened in Lebanon in 1982?” Al Jazeera. September 16, 2022. Accessed April 11, 2024.

[11] Vlazna, Vacy. “Why boycott Strauss?” The Palestine Chronicle. March 11, 2012. Accessed April 10, 2024

[12] For more information, see CJPME Factsheet No. 65 Israeli War Crimes during ‘Operation Cast Lead,’ October 2009

[13] “Strauss Group Reports Results for the Full Year and Fourth Quarter of 2023,” PR News Wire, Accessed April 11, 2024, https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/strauss-group-reports-results-for-the-full-year-and-fourth-quarter-of-2023-302099078.html

[14] “Partnerships,” The Strauss Group, Accessed April 24, 2024, https://sustainability.strauss-group.com/content/strauss-sustainability-framework/partnerships/

[15] “Emergency Campaign 2024 – FIDF,” Friends of the IDF, Accessed April 24, 2024, https://www.fidf.org/

[16] For more information, see CJPME Factsheet No. 238 Boycott Campaign: Indigo Books & Music Inc., December 2023

[17] For more information, see CJPME Factsheet No. 238 Boycott Campaign: Indigo Books & Music Inc., December 2023

[18] “Ofra Strauss,” Strauss Group, Accessed Tuesday April 16, 2024, https://blog.strauss-group.com/behind_the_blog/ofra-strauss/

[19] “Adopt a Combat Battalion,” The Association for Israel’s Soldiers, Accessed Tuesday April 16, 2024, https://www.ufis.org.il/en/activity/adopt-a-combat-battalion/

[20] El-Bouzaidi, Nadia Drissi. “Students want to ban Sabra hummus on campus.” The Fulcrum. March 6, 2014. https://thefulcrum.ca/news/students-want-ban-on-sabra-hummus-on-campus/

[21] Benzaari, Adam, Kareem Abuali and Sepideh Afshar, “McGill needs to boycott Sabra – for real this time,” The Tribune, Nov. 22, 2022, https://www.thetribune.ca/opinion/mcgill-needs-to-boycott-sabra-for-real-this-time-11212022/