El Al Says Purchases From Controlling Shareholder’s Winery Require No Disclosure

El Al says its continuing purchases of wine from Tabernacle, a winery owned by controlling shareholder Kenny Rozenberg, do not require disclosure in its financial reports because the transaction is classified as negligible. Tabernacle is a small winery in Moshav Tzuriel in the Galilee, whose first vintage reached consumers in 2020. The airline said the arrangement falls within its procedure for negligible transactions and that its earlier disclosure had reflected an abundance of caution. In its response, El Al said wine selections are based on professional and commercial considerations, including quality and suitability for the airline. El Al also said the Tabernacle arrangement had been examined and approved several years earlier by the company’s authorized bodies, in accordance with the law, corporate governance rules and its own procedures. The airline’s audit and compensation committee and its board approved the supply relationship in April 2024. Tabernacle’s wines appear alongside those of larger producers, including Golan Heights Winery, Barkan and Galil Mountain. A wine-industry source described a place on an airline’s menu as valuable exposure for a small winery. The selection process described by an industry source involves wineries submitting two or three wines for a dedicated tasting panel before a selection decision.