As Tensions With Lebanon Increase, Farmers in Northern Israel Still Hard at Work
With farms in northern Israel struggling to produce the regional specialties of apples and honey amid Hezbollah rocket fire, this Jewish New Year may be a bitter one
The current week has marked a serious intensification in the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. The two sides have exchanged hundreds of missile strikes in recent days, with the Lebanese Health Ministry reporting 600 casualties in southern Lebanon. On Wednesday, Hezbollah targeted Tel Aviv to strike the Mossad headquarters.
Over the past 11 months of conflict, both Israel and Lebanon have suffered serious damage to land and infrastructure, as well as significant displacement of civilians. Nearly 60,000 Israeli citizens close to the northern border are displaced, while up to half a million people are estimated to have been displaced in Lebanon, according to the Lebanese prime minister.
A potential Israeli ground operation in Lebanon is expected to result in even worse conditions around the border between the two countries.
Farmers from northern Israel have faced huge challenges since the conflict erupted in October. Northern Israel produces large amounts of milk, honey, and apples, and it has been difficult to carry on agricultural activities under bombardment.
I won’t abandon my cows and the land that my family has owned for years despite the current risks. Our cowshed was targeted once already by a Hezbollah rocket, but we are trying to make things work and provide the milk for the country.
“All the people were evacuated from here. I am among those few left, just two and a half kilometers away from the border with Lebanon,” Gili Sagi, a farmer from Kibbutz Eilon, located in Western Galilee, told The Media Line. “I won’t abandon my cows and the land that my family has owned for years despite the current risks. Our cowshed was targeted once already by a Hezbollah rocket, but we are trying to make things work and provide the milk for the country.”
Israel Perez, an apple farmer from Kibbutz Avivim, located directly on the border with Lebanon, has been unable to access his apple crop. “We are not able to pick them up, check the water system, and give them additional treatments,” he told The Media Line. “It is too dangerous. I know other farmers who tried to do it anyway, but Hezbollah saw them and shot at them.”
Since apples and honey are traditional foods of the Jewish New Year, which will be celebrated in early October, the damage to agriculture in northern Israel is expected to hit especially hard.
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Our apples won’t be enough to cover the high request for this year’s celebrations, so we would need to import from abroad, mostly from the States, Italy and Greece now. Hopefully, we will be able to reach food security. This war has taught us that you cannot rely on imports. Turkey used to provide us a lot of food, but the boycott has changed this.
“Our apples won’t be enough to cover the high request for this year’s celebrations, so we would need to import from abroad, mostly from the States, Italy and Greece now,” Perez said. “Hopefully, we will be able to reach food security. This war has taught us that you cannot rely on imports. Turkey used to provide us a lot of food, but the boycott has changed this.”
Earlier this year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced an economic boycott on Israel in support of the Palestinian cause.
Sagi said that beekeepers he knows in northern Israel have assured him that there will be enough honey this year. “Apples are a different story,” he said, noting that prices have risen dramatically amid increased reliance on imports.
Both farmers reported serious economic losses. The Israeli government has promised financial support to those affected, but the funds have not yet been delivered.
The government has been very helpful since the beginning. I can’t complain on that level.
Sagi said he spoke to Israeli President Isaac Herzog and requested his support in rebuilding northern Israeli agriculture. “The government has been very helpful since the beginning,” Sagi said. “I can’t complain on that level.”
Perez noted that he and his fellow farmers still haven’t received the promised funds. “Most of the farmers, given the destruction, gave up on the thought of rebuilding everything back, while others are still hoping to restore normality,” he said. “We require millions. I personally manage to carry on thanks to the fact that I assist other farmers here aside from my work, but it has been tough this week. My fields were affected by the launch of rockets, and I lost a lot.”
He added that many civilians may not feel comfortable returning to northern Israel immediately after the war ends. “Personally, it has been too much, and we need a real plan for the day after,” he said.
Perez and Sagi both pointed to a diminished workforce as another factor complicating agriculture in northern Israel.
“We have four Thai workers who have been with us since the beginning despite the threat of the war,” Sagi said. “They have been very helpful.”
He said that volunteers are not always a viable solution. “It requires time teaching them the profession, and we cannot afford that right now,” he said.
Leket, the national food bank of Israel, has been especially helpful in providing support, Perez said.
“Leket did a great job, that the state should have done,” he said. “They assisted us in these hard months, especially financially, to remain on track. They provided no-interest loans and logistic support. We are grateful for that.”
