A quick Google search revealed the following
interesting facts:
“Agriculture in
Israel is a highly developed industry: Israel is a major
exporter of fresh produce and a world-leader in agricultural technologies
despite the fact that the geography of Israel is not naturally conducive to
agriculture. More than half of the land area is desert, and the climate and
lack of water resources do not favor farming. Only 20% of the land area is
naturally arable. Today agriculture represents 2.5% of total GDP and 3.6% of
exports. While agricultural workers make up only 3.7% of the work force, Israel
produces 95% of its own food requirements, supplementing this with imports of
grain, oilseeds, meat, coffee, cocoa and sugar.”
My mom is fond of reminiscing and sharing stories of
her childhood with me. Whenever we drive around the Eastern Cape, where we both
were born, she always points out how many trees there were and how once upon a
time the people used the land to reap a plentiful harvest – year after year!
Often the tilled land that
I saw in Israel was surrounded by rubble or by stony terrain and some of the
greenhouses were not what one would call “state-of-the-art” but it was clear to
me that those less than ideal factors did not deter those farmers from using
their land.
Banana trees with rubble and "dirt" right where they are growing |
I’m challenged… I do pray that I will not just be challenged without any corresponding action… It is not enough to lament the status quo and do nothing about it!
A 2000 year old tree in the Garden of Gethsemane ----oOo---- |
· http://africacheck.org/reports/is-johannesburg-the-worlds-largest-man-made-forest-the-claim-is-false/
· http://www.moag.gov.il/agri/files/Israel's_Agriculture_Booklet.pdf
· http://israelmybeloved.com/farming-agriculture/