Israeli Irrigation

VOLUME 11 ISSUE 5

Israeli Irrigation

By Kris Polly

Uri Shani: N-Drip’s Revolutionary Drip Line

Give the plant everything it needs, but not one drop more.” This was said to me in a conversation with a representative of an Israeli company that traced its roots to the development of drip irrigation over 50 years ago. That quote has stuck with me because of the practical mindset it represents; use water, but no more than needed.

As you will see in this issue of Irrigation Leader, that practical mindset pervades Israeli agriculture. Despite its semiarid and desert geography, Israel is an agricultural innovation leader. Israel developed drip irrigation a half a century ago and has not stopped irrigating since. Our cover interview with Uri Shani of N-Drip demonstrates this well. The company has developed a new kind of drip line that enables drip irrigation without filters or artificial pressure. We also take a look back at the history of the desert settlement of Kibbutz Hatzerim, which is home to Netafim, the company that pioneered the commercialization of drip irrigation around the globe.

We also feature two high-tech Israeli ag companies. CropX has created the world’s first do-it-yourself soil sensor, which can be installed by a farmer in 5 minutes, and Metomotion has built an autonomous, robotic tomato harvester that can identify and pick ripe tomatoes inside high-tech greenhouses.

Finally, we check in with Mike Pearce of SePRO for an update on the company’s canal and irrigation portfolio and services.

Israel’s impressive achievements in irrigation technology are why we have chosen the country for our next water education and trade tour, scheduled for summer 2021. A special tour preview section in this issue shows what you have to look forward to. I guarantee that by the end of this issue, you will find Israel just as impressive as I do—and will be curious to see the country in person.

Kris Polly is the editor-in-chief of Irrigation Leader magazine and the president of Water Strategies LLC, a government relations firm he began in February 2009 for the purpose of representing and guiding water, power, and agricultural entities in their dealings with Congress, the Bureau of Reclamation, and other federal government agencies. He may be contacted at kris.polly@waterstrategies.com.