One of the main fears associated with climate change is potential food insecurity, since many current crop varieties could see a steep decline in yields in the future.

This is especially concerning given that loss of harvested produce is already high due to factors including inadequate premarket cooling solutions. 

In the developed world, this problem is mitigated by various technologies. 

In the developing world, which comprises most of the planet, the issue of harvested produce waste is at the forefront of the agricultural struggle. 

Natural Offset Farming

“Picture a farmer who heavily invested in the crop, harvested it, but his supply chain still lost 30 to 50 percent of the goods; that is the magnitude of the problem,” Yoni Ben Zaken, VP Business Development of Natural Offset Farming (NOF), tells ISRAEL21c.

Israel-based NOF has developed a patented cooling technology with the developing world in mind. 

The technology utilizes liquid CO2 to generate energy to treat fruits and vegetables immediately after harvesting, increasing shelf life and killing pathogens of harvested produce before it leaves the field. 

The NOF Cooling device is small and portable, doesn’t rely on electricity or infrastructure, and can provide any temperature demanded by the farmer. The product effectively works with all fruits and vegetables, with emphasis on berries, grapes and flowers. 

“We are the first ones to do it at the field level,” says NOF CEO Ishay Hadash. “All the other cooling solutions, 99.9% of them, operate outside of the field, mostly in packinghouses.” 

The second element NOF provides is a comprehensive enrichment and precooling treatment, lowering the field heat (body temperature) of fresh produce after harvest.

“The third element of our device is relative humidity management, which is a critical element in extension of shelf life and prevention of proliferation of pathogens,” Hadash tells ISRAEL21c.

India and Mexico

The nine-strong NOF team, which consists of cooling technologists and agriculture and energy experts, is currently conducting field trials and pre-sales in various markets with an emphasis on the global south. 

“We are working primarily in two countries, India and Mexico, which are actually two different worlds, and we are trying to prove that we are valuable in both,” notes Hadash. 

“The magnitude of the problem in India is huge; it’s a very, very fragmented value chain,” he adds.

According to a 2022 report by India’s Ministry of Food Processing Industries, the country lost 6-15% of its fruit, 5-12% of its vegetables, and 4-6% of its cereals post-harvest. 

“On the other hand, we are also working in Mexico, which is the agricultural breadbasket of the United States, with sophisticated farmers and equipment. They already have cold storages, just not on the field,” explains Hadash. 

One of NOF’s projects in Mexico, initiated and funded by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), was setting up “a cluster of agricultural activity” in the country.

“The value [Mexicans] see in us is different. They look at it from a standpoint of improving food quality and labor issues. They are looking at it as an option to skip certain cooling processes they already do today, like something called free cooling.”

Impact of October 7

NOF was founded in 2022 by veteran agriculture expert Yossi Hadash, the father of Ishay, who is still involved with the company as a consultant.  

In the summer of 2023, a few months before the October 7 attacks, NOF deployed its first prototype in a blueberry field of Kibbutz Erez, one of the few Gaza-adjacent villages where the Hamas terrorists were successfully fought off.

The company is now doing its small part in helping rehabilitate Israeli agriculture, ravaged not only by Hamas in the southwest, but also by Hezbollah in the north.

“The farmers in Israel are very close to selling out all the crops they harvest; they have very good post-harvest practices. So, it’s not necessary for us to be active here, but still we have collaborations with local farmers in niche areas,” says Ben Zaken. 

The aspect that has been negatively affected by the war the most is fundraising. 

“The war affected us in the context of investment; it has been challenging to attract investment, especially for us because investors already don’t like agritech; they prefer AI and cyber,” notes Ben Zaken. 

Hadash and Ben Zaken declined to disclose the amount the company has raised so far from private investors. 

However, it has publicly been awarded two grants from Israel Innovation Authority (IIA), worth 1.7 million shekels ($453,000) and 4.8 million shekels ($1.3 million) each. 

They also received financial backing from Eretz Angels, which is part of Eretz Noshevet, the investment arm of HaShomer HaChadash. 

Despite still conducting field trials, Hadash and Ben Zaken say NOF is “a company on the market” since its systems are being sold to farmers in Mexico and in India.

“Our technology has been proven and accepted by real farmers in those countries,” Ben Zaken says, adding that they’re going slowly in their go-to-market plan to ensure it’s being done optimally. 

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