IDF Chief of Staff's Wife Serves as Director at Food Company Facing Irregularities

Orna Zamir, wife of IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi, is serving as an independent director at the food company "Tomer Food." This comes at a time when the IDF is one of the company's largest clients. The company's stock trading was halted earlier this month due to alleged irregularities concerning inventory management.

Sources in the defense establishment stated that there are no private dealings between Tomer Food and the IDF or the Ministry of Defense, neither during Kochavi's tenure as Chief of Staff nor his previous role as Director General of the Ministry of Defense. All contracts awarded to the company during his service were won legally through tenders, with the lowest bid typically securing the contract. Orna Zamir's appointment to the board occurred approximately three months ago and was declared in an updated conflict of interest agreement.

Zamir, 57, was appointed on May 19th. She holds a bachelor's degree in political science from Tel Aviv University and an MBA from ESG in Paris. She has also worked as a communications consultant and held previous management positions in local government and a water infrastructure company.

Tomer Food, which was trading at a market value of NIS 138 million before the trading halt, is led by Chairman and CEO Doron David Kimelov. The company has denied any connection between Orna Zamir's appointment and its business dealings with third parties, including the Ministry of Defense, stating that these relationships began long before her directorship. They maintain that all dealings with institutional and governmental clients adhere to established procedures.

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit dismissed the allegations as baseless manipulation, asserting that the Chief of Staff has no involvement with the company and made no decisions regarding it in any capacity. They confirmed that his wife's appointment was declared according to procedures to prevent even the appearance of a conflict of interest.