Jerusalem, 9 November, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has launched a three-year pilot program easing land-use regulations to encourage new farmers and revitalize uncultivated land.
Under the streamlined procedure, aging or medically incapacitated veteran farmers holding up to 30 dunams of fallow land can enter operational partnerships with younger local growers while maintaining their legal land rights.
The mechanism relaxes historic legal thresholds, allowing senior landholders’ financial participation to fall below 26% while transferring direct daily management to incoming partners.
To qualify, new participants must reside locally, own less than 10 dunams of land, and submit a detailed cultivation plan. Granted for up to seven years, the non-conforming use permits aim to lower barriers to agricultural entry, prevent land abandonment, and increase domestic produce output.
