Bringing the Latest Seed Enhancement Technologies to Israeli Companies

Israel is a significant producer of seeds for the agriculture industry. Up until today only the largest Israeli companies were able to provide their seeds with advanced enhancement and priming treatments. The owner and CEO of Centor Israel, Jonathan Hyams, explains why: “These technologies rely on very expensive machinery and in-depth know-how as well as regulatory approvals. Small and medium seed producers don’t have the financial basis to hold these abilities in house, and sending seeds abroad for treatment is expensive, so it’s rarely done.” This is where Centor Israel comes in.

 

Centor is an international network of players active in the seed technology arena, including companies in Australia, India, The Netherlands, USA and more. Centor Israel was just established to provide Israeli seed producers with access to the latest seed treatment technologies, with an emphasis on seed enhancement and priming Based on cooperation with Hishtil, the leading plant raiser in Israel, these treatments improve seed germination very dramatically, by 5%-30% depending on the starting point of the seed lot. The enhancement and priming treatment improves germination uniformity to the level of 95% with advanced vigor, resulting in an improved % of usable plants, which is very significant for plant nurseries and other customers. The treatment also leads to improved stock management and monitoring, and includes “state of the art” drying technologies that are very important for the seed companies, adds Hyams.

 

Centor Israel will provide the Israeli producers with high-level treatments such as visual analysis enabling advanced quality, as well as a unique seed sorting technology based on the biological makeup of the seeds. The Centor network has also developed Drying Beads®-a unique technology for drying seeds, without the need for an energy source, making it less expensive for the producer. The new technology is already raising interest in Israel, according to Hyams. The company has also just lunched an unique seed applied coating polymer with one of the lowest dust-off profiles you can find in the market and “there are more biological friendly products to come” promises Hyams.

 

Most of the technologies in use by Centor Israel today were developed in Holland and Australia, but Hyams forecasts that in 2016 the company will open an Israeli facility which will provide service locally to Israeli customers, making the process even more cost-effective. The company is also planning to invest in local R&D and develop unique seed treatment technologies in Israel in the future, planned to serve both the local market and for international export. “We are in discussions with the leading Israeli agricultural research centers like the Volcani Institute and the Ministry of Agriculture, and look forward to initiating fruitful cooperation,” concludes Hyams. “At this stage, I’m excited to be bringing top notch technologies to seed producers of all sizes in Israel.”