Hamas’ Impact on Global Food Security

For the State of Israel, October 7, 2023, was devasting. It has had a profound impact on every aspect of life including, more than is realized, agriculture. Israel has become a global leader in agriculture research and technology providing guidance to Jordan, Africa, and even the State of California. Agriculture has become a major part of the Israeli economy.

Israeli leadership on drip irrigation technology is widely recognized but they are also blending the water with the nutrients needed by the land. In addition, they are powering the irrigation system with solar energy and experimenting with salt water for irrigation.

The October 7 attack took direct aim at Israel’s agriculture leadership and devastated many farming communities, 100,000 acres of agricultural land, and vital farming equipment. The Western Negev Desert which produces 70% of Israel’s produce was the primary target and is critical to the nation’s food security. Agriculture was not collateral damage; it was one of the intended targets.

In order to understand how a small, desert country became a leader in agriculture technology, intent on helping to feed a hungry planet, it is instructive to look back.

Israel is a country with limited water resources. Its climate ranges from Mediterranean in the north to semi-arid and arid in the south. Although the State of Israel was created in 1948, the desert started to bloom much earlier. The Agriculture Research Organization (ARO) was founded by Yitzhak Volcani in 1921 to provide cutting edge agricultural research.

ARO’s research has focused on:

• Agriculture under arid conditions and on marginal soils
• Irrigation using recycled wastewater and saline water

• Crop cultivation in protected environments
• Freshwater aquaculture under conditions of water shortage
• Minimization of produce losses through pest control and post-harvest storage methods
• Seed banking
• Breeding and development of new strains of crops and domestic animals better suited to adverse conditions.

In short, agriculture predates the State of Israel.

The Volcani Center is the Agriculture Research Agency of the Israeli Department of Agriculture; the Volcani International Partnerships is their NGO. USDA has entered into a Partnership with Isreal for Bilateral Agriculture Research and Development (BARD) to promote collaboration among US and Israeli scientists and engineers.

On October 6, 2023 Volcani and Israel were working with USDA, the Tony Blair Foundation, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa and many other international partners to fight global hunger. Immediately after October 7, 2023, they set up ReGrow Israel, a new organization to support Israel’s farming communities. Today, Volcani and Israel are planning to make the desert bloom all over again. They must protect Israel’s food security, help stabilize the economy of Israel, and then again turn to global hunger.

The point is that the Hamas invasion of Israel on October 7 has had a global impact on food security.

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This article is dedicated to Danielle Abraham, the Director of the Volcani Partnerships and ReGrow Israel.