Nearly half of the country's 1.1 miUion acres of farmland 

 are under irrigation. Not a drop of water is wasted; even 

 decorative plants along the highways and on city streets 

 are drip irrigated. Miles of black tubing keeps Israel 

 growing whUe conserving water and much of the irriga- 

 tion is computerized. . Israel has become so proficient in 

 this area that it even exports irrigation systems. 



Product Exports 



The major crops that Israel produces for export are 

 citrus fruits, flowers, vegetables, olives, dates, 

 pomegranates, and persimmons. Most products are sold 

 through marketing cooperatives and exported under a 

 common brand name such as Jaffa oranges and Carmel 

 flowers. 



Exports are mostly to Europe via ship, due to its 

 proximity, but some are sent by air to South America, 

 Mexico and the United States. Products to be sent by air 

 are brought to Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv and 

 shipped out of the Agrexco Freight Terminal. The ter- 

 minal has state of the art equipment for keeping the 

 produce as fresh as possible - computerized refrigeration 

 and transportation systems - during the short time it is 

 stored there. Shipments by sea embark from the bustling 

 port of Haifa to the north. 



Only the best quality products are exported. Any 

 second-rate produce is kept for internal consumption 

 andmuch of that produce is sold at the open air market 

 which covers severed city blocks in Tel Aviv. Similar to, 

 but larger than Boston's Haymarket, the Tel Aviv market 

 offers products from fruits and vegetables to cured fish 

 and meats displayed uncovered. 



Land Shortage 



With the minimal amount of arable land in Israel 

 (about half the country is ju-id) not a meter is left unused. 

 Crops are planted to the edge of highways and under 

 seemingly insurmountable conditions. 



In the desert region of Negev, several miles from the 

 Gaza strip, a former New Yorker named Suzy grows 

 flowers in sand. Through the use of drip irrigation, she 

 produces Baby's Breath and Statice, as well as some 

 vegetables. She and many other farmers are utilizing land 

 that no one else wants. 



In the central part of the country, between Tel Aviv 

 and Jerusalem, an IsraeU name Nogah Hareuvani and an 

 American, Helen Frenkley, 20 years ago took 500 acres of 

 virtual wasteland on the then-Jordanian border and 

 transformed it into a reserve for biblical flora and fauna. 

 Neot Kedumim is situated on land that no one else wanted 

 for physical and political reasons. Today it is a popular 

 stop for tourists as well as an educational center for local 

 schools and universities. 



Packing and Processing 



We toured the Carmel Flower packing plant, the Jaffa 

 Orange packing plant and the Hazera seed processing 

 plant. The flowers are sorted and packed by hand, the 

 seeds are also sorted by hand. The Jaffa plant is fully 

 automated although the oranges are hand inspected. 

 Crates of oranges are given a special bar code that is read 

 by a device using a laser beam. This allows the crates to 

 be sorted by count. 



Research 



Agricultural research is conducted at several institu- 

 tions in Israel. The Volcani Agricultural Research In- 

 stitute, is testing new carnation varieties. Variations 

 included coloring and number of flowers per stem. One 

 variety appeared to be dead, but the researcher assured 

 us it was alive and becoming very popular with florists in 

 Europe for use in arrangements. 



We were asked to participate in a marketing test for 

 olive varieties grown at the institute. Some eight varieties 

 were laid out in bowls and numbered randomly. We were 

 asked to taste them and rate each on such quahties as 

 pungency, color, texture, and oiUness. The test is con- 

 ducted with all groups that visit the institute so that the 

 best tasting olive can be developed based on the charac- 

 teristics that are most well received. 



Our guide in Israel, Dan Dikstein, was a full-time tour 

 guide and part-time chicken farmer. He was extremely 

 knowledgeable about Israel's agriculture and a colorful 

 speaker. He was, however, reluctant to talk about the 

 current crisis. Most Israelis that we met encouraged us 

 to teU people at home in the U.S. that the situation is 

 distorted by the media. 



Dan assured us that it was safe to walk the streets of 

 Tel Aviv at night as long as we stayed on the main 

 thoroughfares such as Ben Yehuda Street and Disengoff 

 Street. "Go for a walk, have a coffee," he said. And walk 

 we did. Every night after dinner at our hotel, the Grand 

 Beach, we strolled the sidewalks of Tel Aviv, some of them 

 crowded, some of them quiet, with their little shops closed 

 for the night. We enjoyed the international flavor of the 

 city - falafel, blinztes towering with whipped cream and 

 cappuccino or Arabian coffee. Israel boasts its own fast 

 food chain - they call it MacDavid's. 



Interspersed with our visits to agricultural operations, 

 were stops at several historical and/or biblical sites. The 

 day that we travelled north of Tel Aviv, Dan brought us to 

 Caesaria by the Sea, a city built by King Herod on the 

 Mediterranean shore. Much of the fortified city is now in 

 ruins, but the ampitheater, with the Mediterranean as it 

 backdrop, still stands and is used today for current per- 

 forming artists from around the world. Herod chose the 

 site of Caesaria for its beauty rather than it amenities. 

 There was no source of fresh water at the site so he built 



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