The Ministry of Agriculture and the Tax Authority formulated dedicated compensation tracks for orchard and citrus growers for loss of harvest and profit due to non-picking or partial picking, due to the security situation. The compensation is based on a predetermined calculation per acre and type of crop. The tracks will apply to the branches: apples, kiwi, avocado, banana and citrus fruits.
The compensation is for farmers whose fields are located up to 20 km from the border of the Gaza Strip, and up to 9 km from the northern border. The fast track will allow compensation for the damage caused to farmers and will help maintain functional continuity for the benefit of the food security of the citizens of the State of Israel.
The citrus industry begins the picking season in September, reaches peak production in December and ends in April. The war broke out at the beginning of the harvest and its consequences are evident and continue on the citrus industry to this day. The citrus industry has a lot of working hands and at the height of the picking season the industry employs about 8,500 workers – 500 Thai workers, 1,500 Israeli workers and about 6,500 Palestinian workers.
During the war, most of the Thais left the country, a blockade was imposed on the territories and the Palestinian workers were not allowed to enter, and the entry of Israeli workers was also restricted to plots in the settlements of Safar. This situation created a severe shortage of working hands, which caused severe damage to the industry.
Also, due to the war, it became difficult to carry out treatments in the plantations due to the restrictions imposed by the army. The farmers, who did not vacate their homes, cultivated the plots under war routine and because of this there was damage to the cultivation activity, irrigation, plant protection treatments and pest control. This caused damage to the quality of the fruit and reduced the harvest suitable for picking and marketing. According to the data of the Ministry of Agriculture, in the area to which the agreement will apply there are about 60 thousand dunams used for growing citrus fruits (50 thousand in the south and 10 thousand in the north).
According to the outline that was agreed upon, the compensation will be based on the loss of income per acre, which also results from reduced harvest, reduced quality and reduced price as a result of damage to export and marketing channels, lack of irrigation, lack of pest control and depreciation. This is ongoing damage to the industry, the picking season is not over yet and the war is also in full swing. The compensation refers only to the indirect damage for the current season and does not refer to future damage, which may manifest itself in the next season, as a result of the failure to treat.
In the combat zones up to 9 km in the north and up to 7 km in the south, the grower will be entitled to demand the full compensation and the additions according to the outline, throughout the citrus marketing season according to the different varieties. Farmers who are within 7-20 km in the surrounding area, will be entitled to receive full compensation, for the varieties whose harvest end date is until January 2024, including varieties whose harvest date is later, for which the farmer will be able to claim only excess depreciation for the entire growing season , in light of the recognition that the increased depreciation was caused by the partial treatment imposed because of the war.
The plantation branch in the Shepar areas are in the harvesting phase starting from the summer of 2023 until the end at the beginning of the year. In most of the orchards, the picking was already finished before the outbreak of the war, therefore the orchards in this outline for compensation for a decrease in picking or non-picking are: several varieties of apples, avocados, kiwi and bananas.
In the combat zones, it was not possible to enter and cultivate the plantations. A large part of the farmers vacated their homes, there was a shortage of working hands and this caused damage to the picking of some of the fruits and damage to the quality of the fruit and reduced the harvest worthy of picking. The farmers cultivated the plots under a routine of war, and because of this there was damage to the cultivation activity, irrigation, plant protection treatments and more.
According to the outline that was agreed upon, the compensation will be based on the loss of income per dunam due to non-harvesting or partial harvesting. Since the damage is ongoing, as the picking season has not yet ended and the war is still in progress, the compensation refers only to the indirect damage, caused in the current season and does not refer to future damage that may manifest itself in the next season as a result of lack of care, late picking or lack of picking at all, pest infestation, etc. The quantification of the future damage, however much it may be, will be based on the agreements in this outline.
In the banana industry, in light of the state of the plantations, in some of them the growers will be forced to uproot the plantation and wait several years until it is possible to resume planting. These are young plantations under seven years of cultivation. For the loss of profit in these years, the plantations that will be uprooted will be given compensation in the amount of NIS 15,750 per dunam.
