The Jewish community in the UAE has substantially grown over the last two years, and with it, the demand for a kosher food source. The first kosher supermarket ever in the Gulf opened in the United Arab Emirates this week to serve the city's growing Jewish population, Al-Monitor writes. The store, Rimon (Hebrew for pomegranate), located in Dubai is a five-minute drive from the Jewish Community Center, which hosts a synagogue and provides Torah classes and social gatherings.
Rabbi Levi Duchman, a rabbi in the UAE, was instrumental in the opening of the supermarket. In a press release, Duchman thanked the Emirates government and local authorities for their cooperation. “When I arrived eight years ago, I always felt the need to build more Jewish infrastructure," Duchman told Al-Monitor. "Now that we have a full kosher supermarket, and a chance for families and tourists to come visit, it is a huge step for normalization and towards living a Jewish life here in the UAE.”
The supermarket opening comes during the holiday season when the demand for traditional food is plentiful. Shelves are stocked with popular Israeli chips, jams, soups, and more. The Jewish celebration of Hanukkah is set to start on Dec. 18 and will last for eight days, ending on Dec. 26.
“So of course, Hanukkah is huge for our community and shows the triumph of light over darkness," Duchman said. "Having our kosher supermarket here, allowing families to come and buy kosher food to celebrate will add tremendous happiness.”
At the head of the operation are Sonia and Alec Sellem, who have been widely involved in setting up Jewish establishments in the UAE. The Sellems also founded Mini Miracles, a Jewish nursery that offers languages such as English, Hebrew, French, Arabic and Russian.
The supermarket will be closed when the Sabbath is observed, from nightfall on Friday to nightfall on Saturday.
As of 2021, the UAE had an 11% native population, of which 85% are Sunni Muslims. But kosher food differs in many ways from halal food, which is prepared in accordance with Islamic law. For instance, Islam permits any edible saltwater or freshwater creatures to be eaten, but a kosher diet requires freshwater and saltwater creatures to have scales and fins before they can be eaten. Shellfish are forbidden.
Since the signing of the Abraham Accords on Sept. 15, 2020, 250,000 Israeli tourists have visited the UAE, according to Israel’s Ministry of Tourism. The establishment of more Jewish institutions such as the Rimon supermarket will likely attract more tourism, not just from Israel but from the wider Jewish diaspora.
As of January 2022, the UAE was home to between 350 and 500 Jews. To commemorate its religious diversity, the UAE aims to achieve the mission of constructing a mosque, synagogue and church side by side in the years to come.
