Our Vision

1. Use All That Hashem Gave Us
Our first year, we worked as a co-op group who “cow shared”- meaning everyone got equal amounts from all the cuts of the animal. Working like this we learned to value the importance of respectfully using all parts of the animal. We and our customers benefited from including varied types and cuts of meat in our diets. This includes organ meats as well as all cuts of the front and hind quarter of the animal. We pride ourselves on having all available for our customers use.

2. Respect The Animals
We traveled the country, meeting ranchers raising cattle, lamb, duck and poultry, searching for growers who raise animals how we want: outdoors, on pasture, room to move around, access to clean water, with no hormones, no antibiotics, kindly treated, raised with “family/social” groups and in close proximity to processing facilities to minimize travel. Only when we find growers who meet our high expectation for animal welfare do we add products to our menu. We first offered beef, lamb and goat, then duck, then organic free-range chickens and turkeys. We have introduced many handmade specialty items in the time since then and look forward to continuing adding to our offering of the best that Artzenu has to offer.

3. Healthy and Natural
We aspire to nourish our family by feeding them food that we feel good about. Therefore, we oversee the whole production process from the grower to your door to ensure no games are played with the meat. We never add additives, preservatives, water injections, nitrites, phosphates, chemicals, or artificial enhancers of any kind to any of our products. We bring you fully natural and healthily prepared meats. We struggled to find kid friendly or ready to eat meats that were free of nitrates, food colorings, gluten, alcohol, grains and added oils, so we decided we needed to make them ourselves. Our sausages, beef burgers, hand cured beef bacon and smoked meats are all made exclusively with natural ingredients so you and your kids can enjoy them!

4. Highest Kashrut Standards
We at Artzenu believe that our products should be healthy not just for the body but for the soul as well. That is why we hold ourselves to the highest standards of Kashrut. We hold all our products to the most rigorous Badatz standards and higher.
Beef, Lamb and Goat - Knives are checked before and after every animal is slaughtered. Animals are only brought in one at a time for shechting. All the meat is Chalak L’Chumra, meaning that is acceptable both to Ashkenazi and Sephardic opinions. The lungs as well as stomach, and any relevant internal organ, are checked to make sure the animal was completely healthy and is Chalak. חלק לדעת המהר"ן הבית יוסף ולחומרות הרמ"א.
Poultry - Chickens are shechted at a peaceful rate of 12 per minute. Ducks and turkeys are shechted at 8 per minute. Knives are checked after every 15 fowl are slaughtered. All lungs, tendons, and intestines are checked before salting to ensure completely Mehadrin animals. Any animal which does not uphold these Kashrut checks are not included in Artzenu’s orders. We believe that animals need to be treated well during the shechita process and are vigilant to only work in factories and slaughterhouses that are: 1) Certified through the veterinary services of Misrad Habriut and the Misrad Hachaklaut. 2) All transportation of animals is only through certified trucks and drivers. 3) Facilities are provided for animals with food, drink, shelter and shade and space to move while awaiting shechita. 4) There is an easy and safe route for animals to be brought from the waiting areas to the shechting facilities. 5) Animals are never prodded or beaten. 6) Appropriate amount of time is observed between slaughtering and processing.

5. All Israeli - Certified 100% Blue and White, Made-In-Israel
We believe in the land of Israel and its people. As Olim, we gave up our comfortable American lives to come close to and support the land and people of Israel. Living in the north we are acutely aware how the grazing lands provide an essential role by ‘holding” many open spaces along our borderlands. We believe strongly in supporting the local artisans who are committed to growing locally and are proud to provide jobs to our Israeli employees and to contribute directly to supporting the nation of Israel. All animals are born and raised in Israel. All slaughtering and production is done in Israel. Locally produced with the bounty of Eretz Yisroel is our greatest pride and the source of our name- Artzenu- Our Land.

6. Freshness
When we arrived in Israel it was impossible for us to find meat with the freshness and kashrut we were used to. We wanted to change that. Freshly slaughtered meat is tastier and, in our opinion, healthier as well. Artzenu is structured specifically to allow us to bring you the freshest possible meat! We organize regular shechting and production of all products, year-round, to make sure our customers get the freshest meat possible. To preserve freshness, our products are delivered frozen in a licensed freezer van.

7. Highest Quality Cuts - American-Fusion Butchery
When we first got to Israel and went shopping, all the meat had numbers on them rather than names of cuts. We struggled to find recognizable cuts and even after learning the Israeli system we struggled with the lack of quality cuts. Where were the bone-in steaks? Where were the dinosaur ribs? London broil, BRISKET? We were at a loss as to why these cuts were unavailable till we learned about the fundamental differences in Israeli production. We oversee the way our animals are butchered at every cut to ensure we get the best cuts from all butchery styles - American steaks and briskets, European osso bucco, Israeli asado. We have invented our own butchery system to bring you the best possible cuts from every animal. In order to make each cut as useable as possible, each individual package comes with the name of the cut written in both English and Hebrew.

8. Customer service and personal relationship with every customer
We started out as co-op amongst friends and continue to run the business like that today. We want you to feel a part of the family when you order from us. We love getting to know each and every one of our customers and for that reason our regular driver brings each package door to door with a smile. We have an active online community on Facebook where our customers can interact, share recipes and ideas and where we upload new and helpful videos and content regularly. Our staff strives to be available and as helpful as possible. We are bringing American style customer service with a smile into the Israeli mainstream!

9. Local and non-live import animals - Lower environmental impact
Around 85% of the meat in the Israeli market is brought in frozen and pre-packaged from overseas. Of the remaining 15% of fresh meat available, 90% is from animals which are imported by boat, live, at a young age and then raised to slaughter weight in feed lots. This process is very stressful for the animals, and has a huge environmental impact due to the transport involved. We work with ONLY Israeli born and raised animals. This is less then 1.5% of the meat available on the Israeli market. We are committed to this as it is the most humane and environmentally friendly option for eating meat. In our opinion, eating fresh and non-stressed meat is healthier, tastier and better for our bodies, souls, and the planet. We take care every step of the way to make sure the meat is raised well, processed humanely, expertly butchered, carefully packaged, and delivered seamlessly. We want you to be able to prepare our meat with confidence in your kitchen, knowing that you are giving the best to yourself and your family.