“The Swords of Iron War, among other things, has sharpened the importance of engaging in the agricultural sector as a body which maintains existence,” said Haifa Group CEO Motti Levin at the opening of Globes Innovation in Agriculture Conference. Levin discussed the need to combine Israeli agriculture and technology to influence the quality of the environment and nutritional security.
“I don’t want to waste words talking about the state of the planet,” said Levin. “We have all seen the ecological traumas – fires, floods, very severe desertification processes – the earth is telling us.” He added that according to UN data, in 2050 the world will face a severe geopolitical crisis. “We will find ourselves in a situation where the world has 40% more people, which will lead to food consumption increasing by 70% because the standard of living has also increased all this time. On the other hand, areas suitable for cultivation will decrease by 13%,” he said.
What is reductive innovation?
Levin outlined the evolution of innovation in the world from the 18th century to the mid-19th century when breakthrough technology entered our lives. “This led to a process of urbanization, a transition from the village to the city, an increase in the quality of life and food consumption,” he said. “The next stage was at the beginning of the 20th century when Aaron Aaronsohn discovered the genome of wild wheat, a discovery that made it possible to develop domesticated wheat. Wheat became the main source of carbohydrates for the human race. In the years 1918-1931, Fritz Haber and Karl Busch developed a process that captures the nitrogen from the air and makes it available, using a gas called ammonia. “These are some examples of what we call ‘expansive innovation.’ of drip irrigation, and less need for fertilizers, because the Haifa Group came along with the soluble fertilizer.” Levin added, “There is a reductionist innovation that brings very high values – higher output, longer shelf life, and on the other hand fewer sources and much less use of water, as well as much less fertilizer. As a result, there is also much less soil and water contamination.”
The solution to polluting fertilizers
Levin continued, “We live in the present and we need to look to the future. It is assumed that we will not find new fertilizer and new molecules and we are today integrating it with the technological revolution. Everyone knows about the concepts of ‘artificial intelligence’, ‘big data’, ‘sensors’. What is missing is in fact, is the integration of all these concepts. Today there is no holistic solution for the management of the agricultural economy.”
To further explain his words, Levin gave some examples about the need for a holistic solution in agritech, such as reducing excess fertilization.
“Excess fertilization is the major problem of agriculture. It is the number two source of greenhouse gases after transport. Over the years, farmers have been over-fertilizing and over-watering in the belief that this is what will lead to the optimization of their land, which is not the case,” said Levin.
On the other hand, he stressed, “To implement the world of precision agriculture, of feeding, watering and using pesticides precisely for the needs of the plant, will create for us a world that is both innovative, and uses technologies, while at the same time greatly reducing environmental damage.”
Levin gave an example of the technology that the Haifa Group uses, “An application that, by taking a photo of a plant’s leaf, knows how to decipher the neutron level in its leaf, the nitrogen level in particular, and from there derive the optimizations that are required to bring this plant to full yields and a much longer life. This is achieved with ntelligent use of the various inputs, water, fertilization, etc.
He added, “Alongside this platform, it is possible to add features of various types of irrigation and plant protection, and turn the smartphone into a place from which the entire agricultural economy is managed in an optimal way, including calculators for working out savings in carbon emissions, and finally also turn it into a platform that will be part of the trading of carbon deficiencies.” Levin says this example, “Should open the eyes of all decision-makers, and turn the agritech sector into an innovative and groundbreaking field.”
Full disclosure: The Conference was held in partnership with Haifa Group
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on January 4, 2024.
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