Department of Agriculture

Tire particles may contaminate crops and enter food chain, Israeli study finds

Around the world, some 1.5 billion tires are produced each year, and tire-wear particles are increasingly recognized as one of the largest sources of microplastic pollution.

|ByJUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
A combine harvesting machine in the Hula Valley. The research provides an important missing link among road traffic emissions, soil contamination, and food production.
Cattle stand on a feedlot at CMA Farm in Barretos, Sao Paulo state, Brazil, December 17, 2025.

Flesh-eating screwworm confirmed in Texan calf, prompting USDA quarantine

A case was confirmed in a calf in La Pryor, Texas, a town about 30 miles (48 km) northeast of the US-Mexico border - a blow to US cattle ranchers.

|ByREUTERS
HANITA FOREST

Government designates eight new forests as natural reserves along northern border

This is a broad initiative led by the ministry, as part of a national regulatory process, aimed at providing effective protection for forested areas in Israel.

|ByYUVAL BAGNO
A LEMON tree sapling, illegally brought to Israel.

Infected lemon tree discovered at Ben-Gurion, could destroy citrus industry

The one-meter-tall sapling was found alongside citrus propagation materials during an anti-smuggling operation done in collaboration with inspectors from the Ben-Gurion Airport.

|ByTZVI JASPER

Giving a hoot

“Since we started working with the Barn Owl Project, we have definitely decreased our use of rodent poison,” stated Nimrod Wolf.

JUNE 19, 2019ByDIANA BLETTER
A barn owl