KOCHI: The agricultural attache at the Israel Embassy in India, Yair Eshel, on Friday visited the Maradu agriculture urban wholesale market as part of an Indo-Israel agricultural project. He is studying the availability of land, suitability of climate and soil and the agricultural methods in Kerala to establish the state’s first centre of excellence in collaboration with the embassy.
Yair said the project will combine Israeli technology with the traditional farming methods of the state.
“We aim to facilitate nurseries, greenhouses, irrigation and fertilisation methods, sustainable farming methods and storage houses to local farmers through the centre of excellence,” the attache said.
He said high-quality farm produce will require high-quality, high-yielding seeds and for that nurseries, where seeds of traditional crops are available, should be built.
The project will be implemented with the cooperation of the Israeli government and state and central governments. He visited the soil lab and Agri Mark at the Maradu market.
Yair also visited the mushroom production centre in Piravom and offered Israeli technology to expand farming activity there. The one-day tour also took him to the country’s first carbon-neutral farm in Aluva. So far, 30 centres of excellence have been established in 13 states of India.