The largest chain of food stores in Luxembourg, Cactus, has decided to stop marketing vegetables and fruits from Israel, including those verified not to come from Palestinian territories.
Israeli sources said that the chain has yielded to pressures from pro-Palestinians, and specifically by the Organization for a Just Peace in the Middle East, which organised numerous demonstrations to stop the marketing of Israeli products.
The chain's management stated that Israeli vegetables and fruits accounted for a marginal income, so they decided to stop marketing in order to prevent customers from being exposed to embarrassing situations as a result of the demonstrations held at the entrances of the stores.
However, the company decided to continue marketing Israeli products such as SodaStream, which is a serious source of income for the retailer, even though SodaStream factories are located in the occupied West Bank.
The website "Yediot Ahronot" announced that the Honorary Consul of Israel in Luxembourg, Daniel Schneider, initiated contact with the company's management to dissuade its decision to stop marketing vegetables and fruits from Israel.
According to the site, Israel fears a widening of the list of large retailers that reject Israeli products. Two and a half months ago, Israel succeeded in frustrating the declaration of a boycott of Israeli products in three large stores (COOP) in the north of Sweden with 655 branches.
