Rabbis, ultra-Orthodox officials, and Haredi influencers on Sunday called for a consumer boycott of Doritos – one of the most popular snacks in Israel – saying its latest ad campaign, which states "there is more than one type of family" is not only offensive to conservative and religious Jews, but it is also nothing short of an "abomination."
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Ahead of Family Day, marked on Tuesday, the Strauss Group, which produces the savory range of chips, released a series of ads on Doritos' Hebrew-language social media accounts featuring straight couples, gay couples, single parents, and a religious-secular couple.
The narrator states, among other things that "There are many families and they are all special and even if it takes courage to dare in all choices, all families deserve to be families."
The message proved too unsavory for some and calls for an ultra-Orthodox consumer boycott were heard immediately.
"For the sake of the mental and spiritual health of the coming generations, we must boycott Doritos, which is trying to influence the natural family group by advertising its products," Jerusalem Deputy Mayor Aryeh King tweeted.
Rabbi Baruch Efrati of Efrat echoed the call, urging his followers not to associate with "this type of evil. It is forbidden to recognize those who live like this as a family."
Emanuel Shilo, editor-in-chief of the religious Zionist B'Sheva magazine tweeted, "Judaism only recognizes a family with a man and a woman. I won't interfere with the life of someone who chooses to live differently, but I won't give my money to a company that uses it to harm my values, Jewish family values."
Ofek Israel, an NGO whose mission statement – as posted on its website – is "to address progressive organizations' efforts to take over public awareness, and their attempt to dismantle the circles of national Jewish identity, family identity and the Jewish identity of the individual" urged Badatz Beit Yosef and Badatz Eda Haredit to strip Dorits of its kosher certification.
The NGO's appeal said the Doritos campaign "gives legitimacy and motivates action – to choose a family life that is inconsistent with the values of the traditional family according to the Torah. … Affording it kashrut badatz encourages the religious public to consume the product while the company uses its revenues to undermine the core identity of the Jewish people."
The removal of kosher certification by the powerful Ashkenazi and Sephardi bodies could deal the brand a blow from which it would struggle to recover.
The ultra-Orthodox sector in Israel wields immense purchase power, amounting to over 10 billion shekels annually. Between kashrut demands, rabbis' decrees, and simple rumors, if Haredi consumers feel slighted enough to boycott any company, they have the power to bring it to its knees. For this reason, most Israeli conglomerates tread very lightly when it comes to the ultra-Orthodox sector, and food manufacturers specifically provide it with tailored attention.
According to News1, both institutions are expected to debate the issue in the coming days.
The report said that if the Strauss Group refuses to pull the ads, the boycott may be extended to other products as well.
Still, Channel 12 News reported that despite the pushback Strauss has no intention of pulling the Doritos campaign.
"We respect all views, beliefs, and the diversity of Israeli society and have no intention to harm any group," the company said in response to the criticism.
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Meanwhile, the religious LGBTQ advocacy group Havruta welcomed the inclusive advertising campaign and denounced "the hatred lobby that once again seeks to slander our families. Our families exist and deserve to be recognized."
The group further called on "anyone who has purchased Doritos and now wishes to boycott it to give it to us – we will distribute the snack in Havruta Torah classes."
