While the state delays compensation: The initiative that is regrowing the northern border
Almost three years after the outbreak of the war, many farmers are still waiting for compensation. The ReGrow organization has raised 6.5 million dollars, is assisting 46 farms, and is promoting the planting of over 268,000 trees and vines in 21 settlements in the north.
While many farmers on the northern border still find themselves in bureaucratic processes with tax authorities and are waiting for compensation that would allow for the rehabilitation of their farms, the Israeli organization ReGrow decided not to wait.
Almost three years after the outbreak of the war, when the damage to agriculture is estimated at thousands of dunams of destroyed orchards and vineyards, the organization has already raised 6.5 million dollars and is working on the ground to bring the green color back to the border.
Not just rehabilitation, but innovation
The ReGrow program is not satisfied with just replanting. It combines rehabilitation grants with advanced agricultural technology, with the goal of improving the productivity and resilience of the farms. As of today, the organization is assisting 46 farms in 21 different settlements — from family moshavim to kibbutzim — and is promoting the planting of over 268,000 trees and vines, including apples, cherries, avocados, and wine grapes.
According to Daniel Avraham, CEO of ReGrow, every year of waiting for compensation is another year of delay in the farm's return to commercial income, as it takes about four years from the moment of planting until harvest anyway. The organization's grants cover about 30% of the planting and growing costs in the first years, which allows farmers to start working right now.
On the ground, this support translates into moving human stories of resilience: Avi Sabagi from Moshav Margaliot, who lost access to half of his farm due to the shooting, is now establishing a modern peach orchard covered with nets to protect against climate damage with the help of the grant.
Eliezer Biton from Moshav Avivim, who decided to plant kiwi instead of the destroyed peach orchards, shares a sense of mission:
"What keeps us here is the understanding that if we are not here — no one else will be here."
Ayelet Levin-Karp, CEO of "Seed Israel", notes that ReGrow is an example of an organization that knew how to bring the experience it gained in humanitarian aid around the world back home to Israel, to strengthen food security and build the resilience of border communities. Now, the organization aims to raise an additional 7 million dollars to expand assistance to 48 more farms waiting in line.
