Mizra ( , lit. Sowing) is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located between Afula and Nazareth, it falls under the jurisdiction of Jezreel Valley Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 689.

History

The kibbutz was established on a tell named Ruba al-Natzra during Hanukkah in 1923 by the first immigrants of the Third Aliyah. The following year the founders were joined by a group which had formed in Haifa, and in the 1930s they were joined by Galician Hashomer Hatzair members from Aliyah Bet. During the British Mandate of Palestine, Mizra hosted the Palmach headquarters, until it was discovered by the Mandate authorities in Operation Agatha of 1946. The kibbutz also has a museum portraying the history of the Yishuv.

The name Mizra can be found on maps from the Middle Ages, though its exact origin is unknown. There is one theory that it is derived from nearby Nahal Mizra, though some believe that is connected to Hovat Mizra, an ancient farm in the area.

Economy

Mizra is known in Israel for its meat processing plant and its store, Maadaney Mizra (Mizra delicatessen), which for many years was Israel's only provider of non-kosher meat, most notably pork. For the Israeli religious public, it was a symbol of impurity and a violation of the state's Jewish character. During the aftermath of "the dirty trick" affair of 1990, an Agudat Yisrael MK said of a Mizra member that he "not only sold pig, he acted like one". The Aliyah from the Commonwealth of Independent States in the 1990s brought Mizra competitors, and it eventually sold 75 percent of the plant to Tiv Ta'am, an Israeli supermarket chain that sells pork.

In 2007, Maadaney Mizra was threatened as Russian-Israeli billionaire Arcadi Gaydamak announced his plan to purchase Tiv Ta'am and turn it kosher, saying he would make Mizra supply chicken instead of pork. However, the deal fell through a few months later, when Gaydamak discovered a contract between Tiv Ta'am and Mizra, that prevented the chain from changing Mizra's character.

Today, in addition to the meat processing plant, Mizra employs a hydraulic machinery factory, and a factory for injecting metal powder. It also has a hotel and a room letting branch, for students of the nearby Max Stern Academic College of Emek Yezreel. In addition, the kibbutz also operates a center for alternative medicine, including Reiki, reflexology and Shiatsu.

References

External links

• Kibbutz website