The Jerusalem Post tells the story of a typically Israeli munchie:

The year was 2003, and in Israel, the Homefront Command worked to prepare Israelis for Iraqi missiles. Gas masks were issued, and all over the country, people bought heavy plastic sheeting to seal up a room. Everyone shopped for emergency supplies – flashlights, bottled water, milk, sugar, flour, bread – and Bamba.

Bamba, the peanut-flavored snack food, wartime essential? Indeed – on March 27, 2003, the Knesset declared Bamba a vital staple food, meaning that workers at the Bamba factory in Holon would receive call-up orders to produce Bamba, just like soldiers. “We see the Bamba factory as vital, just like a bakery,” said then-Labor Ministry official Nahum Eido.

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