Netafim is an Israeli manufacturer of irrigation equipment. The company produces drippers, dripperlines, sprinklers and micro-emitters. Netafim also manufactures and distributes crop management technologies, including monitoring and control systems, dosing systems, and crop management software, as well as a variety of services, including managed irrigation, agronomical advisory and operation and maintenance. As of 2012, Netafim was the global leader on the fast expanding market of drip- and micro-irrigation.Drip Irrigation Expanding Worldwide
National Geographic, 25 June 2012, accessed 1 August 2019 In it was the overall largest provider of

drip irrigation Drip irrigation or trickle irrigation is a type of micro-irrigation system that has the potential to save water and nutrients by allowing water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, either from above the soil surface or buried below the surface. ...

systems, with a global market share of 30%.Tova Cohen
Israeli irrigation firm Netafim sees 50 pct earnings rise by 2020
Reuters.com, 21 March 2018, accessed 1 August 2019

History

In 2020 Netafim held an over-30% share of the global drip irrigation market. The company recorded revenues of over $1.063 billion in 2019. Netafim is headed by President & CEO Gaby Miodownik, and jointly owned by

Orbia Orbia (previously Mexichem) is a company providing specialty products and methodologies in the precision agriculture, building and infrastructure, fluorinated solutions, polymer solutions and data communications sectors. It was founded in 1953 ...

(80%) and Kibbutz

Hatzerim Hatzerim ( he, חֲצֵרִים, ''lit.'' Farmyards) is a kibbutz located 8 kilometers west of Beersheba in the Negev desert in Israel. It is named after the Bible (Deuteronomy 2:23), mentioning a site nearby: "the Avvites who lived in farmyard ...

(20%), following extensive bidding by half a dozen interested parties, including U.S. industrial technologies company Fortive Corp (FTV.N), Singapore's

Temasek Holdings Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, or simply Temasek, is a Singaporean state holding company owned by the Government of Singapore. Incorporated on 25 June 1974, Temasek owns and manages a total of US$496.59 billion (S$671 billion) in assets un ...

EM.UL U.S. tools maker

Stanley Black & Decker Stanley Black & Decker, Inc., formerly known as The Stanley Works, is a Fortune 500 American manufacturer of industrial tools and household hardware and provider of security products. Headquartered in the greater Hartford city of New Britain ...

(SWK.N), Chinese investment fund Primavera and Chinese pipe maker Ningxia Qinglong (002457.SZ).

Timeline

* 1960–1965 – Water engineer and inventor Simcha Blass carries out tests on the world's first dripper device. * 1965 – Kibbutz

signs agreement with Blass to establish Netafim * 1966 – Introduces world's first commercial dripper * 1978 – Introduces world's first pressure compensated (PC) dripper * 1981 – Opens first subsidiary outside of Israel * 1998 – Merges into single corporation * 2007 – Introduces world's first low-flow dripper * 2011 –

Permira Permira is a global investment firm. Founded in 1985, the firm advises funds with assets under management of €60+ billion. The Permira funds have made approximately 300 private equity investments in four key sectors: Technology, Consumer, Ser ...

funds acquires controlling interest for €800m * 2013 – Named 2013 Stockholm Industry Water Award (SIWI) Laureate * 2020 - Netafim acquires Dutch turnkey greenhouse projects provider Gakon, establishing Gakon Netafim On August 7, 2017, Mexichem SA announced it would acquire Netafim from Permira Holdings Ltd. for $1.5 billion.

Ownership

In 1973, Netafim brought in its first partner, Kibbutz Magal, based in the Sharon region, and then added a second partner, Kibbutz Yiftach, based in the Upper Galilee region, in 1978. Netafim Hatzerim, Magal and Yiftach merged to create Netafim (ACS) Ltd in 1998. In 2006, Markstone Capital Partners Group and Tene Investment Funds acquired a share of Netafim. In 2011, the European private equity fund

acquired a majority (61%) stake in Netafim, with Kibbutz Hatzerim holding 33% and Kibbutz Magal holding 6%. In 2017 these owners sold 80% of Netafim to Mexichem, with Kibbutz Hatzerim retaining 20%.

Products

Netafim produces

systems and other water technologies intended to increase yields and improve crop production while preserving quality and quantity of water and

soil fertility Soil fertility refers to the ability of soil to sustain agricultural plant growth, i.e. to provide plant habitat and result in sustained and consistent yields of high quality.

. The company products are designed to provide solutions in the areas of efficient

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been devel ...

, control and

agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and s ...

for a range of field crops, orchards and vineyards grown under varied topographic and climatic conditions throughout the world. At present Netafim is developing ecological solutions for producing fuel from alternative sources. Concurrently, Netafim is launching a low pressure irrigation system that offers a solution for areas where water pressure and/or electrical infrastructure do not permit using high pressure systems. This development will facilitate introduction of the drip irrigation systems into additional agricultural areas.

Global presence

In 1981, the company opened NII, its first international subsidiary, in the US. Today Netafim maintains 33 subsidiaries and 17 manufacturing plants worldwide, and employs over 5,000 workers. In January 2014 it was announced on

Bloomberg Bloomberg may refer to: People * Daniel J. Bloomberg (1905–1984), audio engineer * Georgina Bloomberg (born 1983), professional equestrian * Michael Bloomberg (born 1942), American businessman and founder of Bloomberg L.P.; politician and ...

that Netafim had won a $62 million water project contract to '' build an automated water pipeline network'' in the southern state of

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karn ...

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

. Since then Netafim has won additional 7 community irrigation projects in India covering in total 106,000 hectares and 97,000 farmers. In March 2016 it was announced in Globes that Netafim had won a 200 million project in Ethiopia to provide an end-to-end irrigation solution for a plantation by the Ethiopian government sugar company. In March 2019 Netafim won a $60 million project in Rwanda to develop an agribusiness hub.

Drip irrigation & sustainability

Netafim is involved in several global sustainability initiatives. The company is a member of the UN CEO Water Mandate and UN Global Compact (UNGC), and was named 2013 Stockholm Industry Water Award Laureate for its contribution to sustainable water management. According to company sources, the use of drip irrigation for rice and tomatoes cuts down on greenhouse gases and nitrous oxide associated with algae blooms.

References

{{reflist Agriculture companies of Israel Hydroculture Low-flow irrigation systems Manufacturing companies based in Tel Aviv Agriculture companies established in 1965 Manufacturing companies established in 1965 1965 establishments in Israel Israeli brands Israeli inventions Permira companies Irrigation companies