“All I Know is the Land”

A recent visit to Moshav Avnei Eitan reveals the dedication and resilience of  the people of Gush Katif. Living on two blocks sectioned off from the rest of the yishuv, the former residents of Gush Katif live in very modest caravillas and have large shipping containers adjacent to their homes, which contain the belongings from their large homes that used to be in seaside Gush Katif communities.

We meet Doron Yannai, a farmer who lived a various communities in the Gush:  Morag, Neve Dekalim, and Tel Katifa. He and his wife lived there for a total of 14 years,  where he had a successful business exporting organic produce.

Forty-two year old Yannai is a father of seven children.  One son just had his Bar Mitzvah in early July. They now live in Avnei Eitan, in the Golan Heights, but they’ve managed to purchase a permanent home elsewhere, and they  currently await authorization.

Doron Yannai, Organic Farmer

Doron and his wife managed to plant new organic crops. JobKatif assisted with initial start-up capital to purchase equipment and helped with business management.  They planted together with their children and currently have fourteen different types of produce: peppers, tomatoes (regular and cherry), squash, cucumbers, sweet corn and more.

“My wife is the engine behind the business,” Doron tells us. “She helped me keep my sanity.”

He takes us on a tour of the greenhouses, and explains that he plans on transporting them to the region where he and his family will permanently live, once they get through all of the government approvals.

“I have no  college degree, but I love the land,” Doron says. “What I do best is agriculture. I have  to keep planting…no matter where I live.”

For a tour of the Yannai Family’s “Wonder of Wonders” Organic Produce Farm close to Moshav Avnei Eitan, see our Business Directory for contact information.