–
A new nonprofit project will try to improve cattle breeding in Israel with cows from Texas.
–
Will you offer us a hand? Every gift, regardless of size, fuels our future.
Your critical contribution enables us to maintain our independence from shareholders or wealthy owners, allowing us to keep up reporting without bias. It means we can continue to make Jewish Business News available to everyone.
You can support us for as little as $1 via PayPal at [email protected].
Thank you.
The Israel Longhorn Project is an educational and cattle crossbreeding improvement project helping Israel, East Africa and if possible Jordan by introducing a viable breed of beef cattle that can fit and can thrive in their semi-desert environments. Israel needs cattle that fit its desert environment and the Texas Longhorn is it.
The Longhorn will decrease calve and cattle losses, allowing ranchers to use fewer animals and less land to raise enough to support themselves and their communities.
In Israel the Texas Longhorns can eat invasive shrubs and cacti (decreasing fire hazards), have higher reproduction rates and very low loss rates while protecting their calves from predators, and have excellent calving and mothering abilities. They also can solve the problem of rising feed costs and are highly resistant to diseases.
The project is unlike any other nonprofit. First it must demonstrate to the farmers and ranchers in Israel how well Texas Longhorn cattle thrive in harsh desert environments and teach them how to work with these cattle in a safe and humane manner. It will then donate Texas Longhorn cattle to the farmers so that they can breed desert genetics of them into their failing herds.
The production of the Texas Longhorn cattle in Israel will make the project self-supporting, allowing it to fund all its educational and charitable activities.
Texas Longhorns have a 400-year history of not only surviving but also proliferating and flourishing in the Texas/Mexico desert. The project will scientifically document this ability for the first time.
They are looking for donations ranging from as little as $18 to as much as $50, 000 in order to reach their goal of $375, 000 in funding needed to start the project and fund it for its first year. Another $200, 000 will be needed to fund years two through five. It hopes to be self-supporting after that.
The intention is to create a self-sustainable herd of 300 head of pure breed Texas Longhorns.
The Israel Longhorn Project will be using 21st century cattle handling methods, called Stockmanship, and ecological grazing techniques, called Strategic Grazing. Both will be taught to participating ranchers. This will decrease damage to the beef which turns it into dark meat.
Stockmanship is a method of moving cattle without stress that uses the cow’s body space. Animals have demonstrated a positive and pleasurable response to this method of movement.
Strategic Grazing is a rotating method which uses every part of a pasture, one section at a time allowing grass and plant life to restore itself. Meadows are divided into equal parts and so that a herd can graze in each area separately before moving on to the next. Resting grazed areas for days, weeks or even months, restores plant life.
The project is currently supported by the Israeli Border Police, the New Shomrim, Israel’s Agriculture Department, the Prime Minister’s office and Chaim Dyan of AMBAL. (Israel cattle breeders Association) and Migal – Galilee Technological Center, in Kyriat Shmona.
Robin Rosenblatt is the President and CEO of the project. He discovered the problem and created its solution and has a B.Sc. in Animal Science from California State University Fresno and an M.Sc. in Animal Science from the Hebrew University’s Rehovot campus in Israel.
Rosenblatt Worked as a cowboy, horse wrangler, horse trainer, trail guide, equine assisted therapist and horseshoer. He describes himself as a former Israeli Soldier, past anti terrorist agent, Jewish educator, Islamic educator, community worker, farmer and kibbutznik.
