WCHR Home WCHR 1 WCHR 2 WCHR 3 WCHR 4 WCHR 5 Search
A. Erez, I. Spharim and S. Shalhevet
A. R. O., The Volcani Center
P.O. Boxb>
A. R. O., The Volcani Center
P.O. Box 6
Bet - Dagan, 50250
Israel
The developmental stages of the Israeli modern horticulture may be divided into 5 phases as follows:
1st phase: Establish easy to handle fruit products: wine grapes and almonds , late 19 century.
2nd phase: Establish citrus orchards in irrigated land for export mostly, Early 20 century.
3rd phase: Widening the variation of fruit crops for local consumption and part for export: mostly after 1950.
4th phase (present): Reduced profitability of export and increase of local demand led to increase in production for the local market on the expense of export. Opening of the markets to importation leads to improvement in production efficiency. As of the late 80ies of this century.
5th phase (future): Concentrating on niche markets with a high
return for specialty product for export and local market, reduced
labor involved in horticultural crops. In the local market, increased
efficiency due to competition from other countries.
1.1. Introduction
Israel was established 50 years ago but agricultural research
has started, in then Palestine, 75 years ago. The belief that
for development of modern agriculture there is a need to invest
in research was the motivation of the establishment of the fia need to invest
in research was the motivation of the establishment of the first
Agricultural Research Station in Rehovot in 1923 by founders of
the agricultural research in this part of the world. Although
this land was one of the most stormy in the world and went since
then through many wars, a rapid development in agriculture and
horticulture has led to a rapid expansion and diversification
of the crops grown.
1.2. Stages of Horticultural development in Israel
The first phase: Establishment of modern horticulture has
started with the efforts to grow almonds and later wine grapes
by French technology. These efforts established the wine industry
in Israel. The reason for promoting these crops was the notion
that with limited transportation means and with limited local
demand, dry almonds and wine could be relatively easily be exported
with no major losses. Also, these two crops could be grown with
no or with limited added irrigation and thus were fit to the initial
stages of fruit development in this country in the end of the
19th century (Lowe 1966).
The second phase: The breakthrough in modernizing horticulture came with the introduction of irrigation. Irrigated crops started about 100 years ago with the development of citrus growing in Israel. Introduction of irrigation was possible only in location where water was easily available. Water was found in the shallow coastal aquifer and was used for irrigatinghe shallow coastal aquifer and was used for irrigating the sandy loam soils in the coastal plain. But the need for more water led to exploitation of harder to get water resources, and to establish water transfer plants to long distances. New dry areas in the southern part of the country, that were not used for agriculture, were open to development by water transport.
Citrus fruits, especially grapefruit and lemons, were first introduced to Israel around 1000 AD. The first quality oranges were first produced only around 1850 when export of Shamouti (locally selected cultivar) oranges to Europe has started. Export of citrus to Europe led to increased research and development in expanding varieties, rootstocks and improved propagation means (Openheimer 1955).
For the immigrants arriving to Israel in the beginning of the
20th century, agriculture was the only possible way of survival.
Many of the immigrants were highly educated and motivated people
that developed new forms of agricultural settlements and introduced
many innovative ideas, including in development of horticulture.
The third phase: A new era of horticultural development started after the establishment of the state. New and vigorous plantations in the fifties and sixties led to revival of the citrus industry and reestablished Israel as an important exporter in the European market. Side by side with the citrus revival, new fruit species were expanding raptrus revival, new fruit species were expanding rapidly. Deciduous crops that were grown to a limited extent were planted in large areas. New subtropical and tropical species were introduced and a few were established successfully like avocado, persimmon and mango. A success story was the establishment of bananas for local consumption in specific areas under intensive irrigation and fertilization. Wide introduction of date palm plants established a strong industry that opened the market to export of dry or semi-dry fruit. In addition, expansion of vegetable crops to whole year supply was developed rapidly by utilizing warm regions in winter and by growing winter crops in polyethylene greenhouses and tunnels. The ability to produce vegetables in the warm valleys of Israel in the winter led to an establishment of an export effort of winter vegetables to Europe describing Israel as the "greenhouse of Europe". But even with vegetables most of the production was aimed at the local market.
Till the early fifties, ornamental horticulture was very small.
Later on, efforts were put in establishing this horticultural
branch. As of the eighties, increased interest led to a concentration
of efforts that led to a rapid expansion of this horticultural
branch by introducing of many new species and by production of
off-season flowers under tunnels and greenhouses mostly for the
export market. Importation and domestication of new ornamental
portation and domestication of new ornamental
plants from all over the world as well as breeding new varieties
were an integrated part of the development. In a short period
of time, Israel became a major producer and the 3rd world exporter
of ornamental crops mostly of cut flowers but also of propagated
material and pot plants. Similarly to vegetable crops, Israel
had the advantage of relatively good growing conditions in winter
especially under protected cultivation. So the main effort in
ornamental production was shifted to export during the winter
season.
In a country of dense population and little arable land, intensive horticulture was emphasized at the expense of field crops. Today, horticultural produce constitutes half of the total agricultural production.
Past experience teaches that industries, organization and firms do not last for ever. Their decline usually caused by failure to adapt to the changing socio-economic, technological and political environment. The environment relevant to horticulture is going through a process of a major change that presents an unprecedented threat (see table 1). The question is how to cope with the changes and survive?
History shows that horticulture did respond to changes, but its
reaction time is long and sometimes the adjustment period is very
painful. Planning horticulture's response in advance can reduceul. Planning horticulture's response in advance can reduce
the time and pain involved.
3.1 Possible reactions to the most likely scenario
Israeli horticulture will have to react to the scenario proposed in Table 1. In the following manners:
- Redefining the business of horticulture.
- Specialization: Changing the product mix and the target markets.
- Adaptation: Changing the production technology and the products
to fit the new environment.
3.2. Redefining the business of agriculture
Agriculture is usually defined as the "production of food
and fibers." We propose to define it as "harnessing
biological systems to the benefit of man." This definition
will give us more room to implement the capabilities of agricultural
research, production and management.
3.3. Specialization
The world is going through a period of globalization, which is manifested in many ways. Here we will deal only with lowering the political barriers that impede the trade in goods. These barriers will be diminished as the result of GATT and other trade agreements. The political barriers may vanish, but the logistic barriers on fresh bulky products will still remain. (The logistic barrier includes the time that passes on the way from the sender to the receiver, and the costs of transporting fresh agricway from the sender to the receiver, and the costs of transporting fresh agricultural produce.)
Specialization will cause some horticultural branches to rise and others to decline according to the relative advantage.
In the following sections we identify the relative advantages
of products in countries and predict the type of specialization
that will enable a country to cope with the globalization process.
We will demonstrate this method on a case study of specialization
in our region.
3.4. Specialization in the Middle East region
One of the changes in our political environment is the opening of the borders between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to agricultural trade. This change is already becoming reality, and we believe that eventually there will be open borders with Jordan, Egypt and perhaps with Syria too. This situation is relatively simple to analyze, because the physical environment (climate, land, pests) is similar in those neighboring countries, and there is almost no logistic barrier between them.
The analysis is based on the data presented in figures 1 and 2. Fig. 1 describes the pattern of production factors availability in neighboring countries. Fig. 2 describes the pattern of production factor intensity of several agricultural products.
Horticultural product that requires intensive use of certain production
factors, will fit in country where these factors exist in relative
abundance. For ountry where these factors exist in relative
abundance. For example, strawberries, which are labor intensive
but require little capital investment and little use of land and
water per unit of output, will fit the Palestinian Authority or
Jordan, where capital is rare, labor is plentiful, and land and
water are scarce.
Table 1: The scenario for Israeli agriculture
| Demographics: | Increased crowding of the population in the area between the sea and the desert, which includes Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan. |
| Technology: | The long-distance transportation costs of fresh products will not change significantly.
There will be no revolutions in the usage of inputs (land, water and fertilizers), so input intensity patterns will remain the same. At the crossroad between agriculture and new generic techniques (genetics, information, sensors and control), the revolution is at the gate. |
| Political Environment: | The local market will be open to competitors from abroad. Foreign markets that are now closed will open before us. Government intervention will gradually decrease. |
| Socio-Economic EnvirTH=169>Socio-Economic Environment: | The "greens" will increasingly see in the modern agriculture a cause of contamination of food, water and the environment. An increasing number of consumers will identify the linkage between their health and the food they eat. |
| Resources: | The water limitation will be more effective.
Labor availability will decrease while wages will increase. |
Fig. 1: Competing countries by patterns of production factor
availability (per capita) [under country name - population in
millions]
Fig.2: Profile of Horticultural Products
Patterns of Production factor Intensities
Input units / output value
| Table Grapes | Apple | Mango | Grapefruit | Orange |
 | 
|  | 
|  |
| Melons |
3.5. Predicting of specialization
Our approach to identify specialization is demonstrated in a simplified
manner in Figure 3. This approach compares the patterns of production
factors availability in countries with the pattern of production
factor intensities in a few horticultural products. A given country
will specialize in a product that it's pattern of production factors
intensity will fit the country's pattern of production factor
availability. This example shows that Israel will specialize in
Melons, Jordan in strawberries and Morocco in Citrus.
3.6 Adaptation
The following guidelines have a bearingon The following guidelines have a bearing on adaptation: - Differentiating The Product: Product differentiation can give the local producers a competitive advantage in specific market niches. One of the means of achieving differentiation is by viewing agriculture as a link on the value added chain from the producer to consumer, including the retailers. Adjusting the product to the retailers' needs can provide agriculture with a competitive advantage. Fitting the retail marketing outlets to the special characteristics of the fresh and bulky agricultural products can provide an additional advantage.
- Environmental Products: In a densely populated country such
as Israel, agriculture is not a mere external supplier of goods
to the city, but an important part of the urban system. Viewing
agriculture and the city as one system, where agriculture serves
as the city's "environment", will change the role of
agriculture, as well as its political environment. In this context,
agricultural produce will be not only fresh fruits and vegetables,
but also environmental products such as fresh air, open spaces
and scenery. Most of these "environmental products"
are public goods whose allocation in a free market does not correspond
to society's needs. Where the market allocation fails, social
organization is needed. 4.0 The role of horticultural research
|
