Sustainable agriculture entails maintaining a balance between the need for providing food and that for conserving natural resources for future generations. The approach of the Center advocates that reaching sustainability requires development and assimilation of technological innovations, coupled with a holistic view and open mindedness for conservative practices.
Goals of the Center: Smart and precise irrigation and fertilization; soil conservation management practices; optimal pest and plant diseases control, soil health and carbon sequestration; diminishing of greenhouse gas emissions.
The Center’s activities will promote novel approaches such as precision agriculture, artificial intelligence, robotics, sensors, statistical models and decision support systems. All alongside sustainable practices as minimal or zero soil tillage; incorporation of service crops in orchards, vineyards and field crops; use of composts and other organic amendments; crop rotation; incorporation of grazing as part of cropping management; taking a holistic view in an array of aspects. To achieve all of the aforementioned, the first two years of the Center were dedicated to purchasing laboratory analytical equipment, field machinery and measuring instruments; drowns for precise application of fertilizers and pesticides, building a greenhouse and growing houses; and reconstruction of cattle sheds.
In the course of September 2024 the Center will hold its first symposium under the title: “Service crops in orchards and field crops in Israel: accumulated experience, research issues and challenges”.
