An "Essential Products" Basket that Includes Candy and Soda, Not Fruit and Vegetables
- ACRI
- Jan 7
- 2 min read
On January 4, 2026, the Ministry of Economy and Industry launched the "Israel Basket" project: retail chains with many branches nationally can compete to offer the lowest price for a shopping basket of 100 products defined as "basic products." Despite the good intentions, an examination of the list of products included in the basket, the tender conditions that were published, and media reports all raise serious concerns that the project was developed without taking into account a number of important considerations and guidelines from health professionals, and that it will ultimately be economically and geographically inaccessible to large swaths of the public.
On January 7, 2026, ACRI attorneys Elza Bugnet and Hagar Shechter sent an appeal to the Ministers of Economy and Health, noting several failures in the project. The major issue is that the basket does not include many products that are actually essential, especially fruit, vegetables, legumes, whole grain breads, tahini, and nuts, all of which the Ministry of Health recommends consuming daily. Products recommended for weekly consumption, such as meat and fish, are also not included in the basket. In contrast, the basket includes numerous products that the Ministry of Health recommends not consuming at all, such as snacks, candy, sugary drinks, and ultra-processed food. We at ACRI have not been the only ones to notice: authorities from the Ministry of Health, and particularly professionals from the Nutrition Departments—who were not consulted during the project’s development—harshly criticized the composition of the basket after the project was launched.
In short, the Ministry of Economy and Industry launched a project intended to reduce the cost of living, but instead of making products cheaper that would enable socioeconomically disadvantaged populations to access to balanced and healthy food, it incentivizes these populations to base their diet on products harmful to their health. The appeal requests that the basket’s product composition be changed, in consultation with health professionals, to ensure that the products and their prices serve the public good. The appeal also requests that the ministry ensure that a more appropriate basket is accessible for all populations throughout Israel.
ACRI’s appeal, January 7, 2026 (Heb)
