United Nations cafeterias to offer kosher meals

The United Nations announced Monday that it will begin serving kosher food in its on-site cafeterias, Israeli news site ynetnews.com reports. Assistant Vice President Rad Zivkovic told FoodService Director on Wednesday that the meals will come from nearby restaurants, and will not be cooked at the U.N.'s on-site kitchen.

The move came after Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon wrote to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon calling for the change, highlighting the U.N. employees and diplomats worldwide who observe kashrut, or Jewish religious dietary rules. “For many Jews around the world, eating kosher food is a fundamental aspect of religious practice,” Danon wrote. “We believe that all citizens of the world should feel welcome in the U.N.” About 21% of the 5.3 million Jewish people in America keep kosher, according to a 2013 National Jewish Population Survey, the most recent numbers available.

The U.N.’s foodservice already offers halal (meat prepared according to Muslim law), vegetarian and vegan meals, but Zivkovic says that because there is no separate kosher kitchen on-site, with separate cookware and serviceware, the global body doesn't have the capability to prepare that food to the correct standards. "Halal is a little different, because we can prepare it in our kitchen," he says. "[By bringing in outside kosher food], we're able to accommodate just about everybody."

For more details on kosher foodservice, visit oukosher.org.