The "Iron Swords" war damaged quite a few agricultural businesses in the north and south of the country. There are those who were directly harmed by damage to fields or facilities critical to continued production, and there were those who were harmed indirectly but no less significantly due to manpower shortages and the like.
If this were not enough, agricultural terrorism has also reared its head in some areas. The combination of the two can be an irreversible injury for a business. One such example, which with a little support from us, will end with a happy ending, is an incident that happened last night (Sunday) to Sarit Peretz, who is behind the successful family date brand "Sarit Tamarim". The family's agricultural fields are located in the north of the Dead Sea.
The damage done,
"We woke up in the morning for another routine day of work in the date grove – these are complicated days, among other things, because we have almost no workers – and we just discovered that almost all the seedlings that were slated for planting next week were stolen and others were damaged," Peretz says, adding that "the police are involved. Everything is under investigation, so naturally I can't go into more detail than that, but I pray that the culprits will be found."
Peretz further explains that the family is currently at the end of the Gadid season, just before the first rain. "This year we planned to plant a new plot of dates in order to increase the economy and the hold on the land," she says. "Especially in this time of uncertainty, strengthening our Israeli agriculture is a top goal."
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She said this was not the first time agricultural terrorism had hit her popular and beloved business. "Unfortunately, this is not the first time that farms here have faced theft. The farmers suffer severe financial and psychological damage. The war caught us in the midst of our date harvest, which begins at the end of August and lasts until the end of October."
What does this mean?
"In fact, it means that every day, from the early morning, we gather together. Many workers are missing, many of them have been recruited and the dates remain on the trees or in the packing houses because there is no one to sort them. Fortunately, we managed to take control of everything and fenced everything that was on the trees, now all we have to do is deal with the sorting and distribution stage."
Sarit Tamarim is a family business led by Sarit Peretz, daughter of farming parents from Vered Jericho in the northern Dead Sea. During Operation Protective Edge, almost a decade ago, due to the fact that the war was also during the Gadid period, Peretz decided to start marketing the dates directly to private homes almost throughout the country.
"You'd be surprised how many people buy quality dates, especially at home and not as a casual purchase when they're in the supermarket or market," she says. "Tamar has become a basic consumer product with the right energy that everyone needs to put into his body."
What message would you like to convey?
"I ask – don't give up on us! You are part of our story, strong Israeli agriculture is the resilience of us all. Buy only blue, white, Israeli, and remember that behind every bite you take from the date there is one person who planted, watered, sang, prayed, and believed." Concluded.
To order from Sarit Tamarim click here
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