VGI (Israel) Agricultural products development Ltd. was founded in 1987 by the late Shaul Sela a farmer, pioneer and inventor.
Pioneering desert agriculture
Born on Kibbutz Mishmar Hasharon, Shaul Sella was born and bred a farmer. He graduated from the Faculty of Agriculture in Rehovot – a campus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
In 1970 he established “Sadot”, the first communal settlement in the Sinai desert. He intended to grow flowers and vegetables for exporting by using Drip irrigation systems to provide plants with water and nutrients.
Sela experimented with several soluble fertilizing substances which can be delivered via irrigation drippers. He was successful and very quickly the barren desert land became a green oasis. Both tourists and agricultural experts from all over the world flocked to Sadot to see the Israeli Miracle.
The search for a natural alternative
However, since he was familiar with the disadvantages of petrochemical fertilizers, Sela started his search for organic based alternatives. His vision was of environmentally friendly non-toxic agriculture.
The organic fertlizers he was developing had to meet the highest standards:
- Fully water soluble, enabling effective and easy application through irrigation systems.
- Increased root mass and development and enhance the plant’s nutrients uptake efficiency.
- Enable and encourage the development of beneficial bacteria and enzymes in the soil, improve soil structure and support microorganisms, making nutrients available more quickly
- To support and improve metabolic processes within the plant.
Cooperation with specialists and extensive trials
By the mid-80s Sela developed the KF preparation. KF ability to increase the yield and improve the appearance of the product was quickly recognized by large agricultural companies, who used the product and VGI.Ltd was formed.
VGI products are suitable for the growing environmentally friendly agriculture. They help maintain the ecology and contribute to reducing carbon dioxide emissions in agricultural production.
Shaul Sela’s creative thinking and his ability to find order in natures chaos flared the imagination of Donald J. Goldberg – an internationally renowned expert in grapevine growth from California. Goldberg joined Sela paving the road to success.
The world’s best growers use VGI’s unique fertilizers and scientific feeding methods devised by Goldberg and Sela .
VGI are currently working towards the development of new products, distributing the existing range and implementing the unique fertilization programs. Farmers using the products achieve higher yields of top quality produce.
Further trials and outstanding results
These developments led to further trials and further highly encouraging results. Crops that had suffered from temporary lack of microelements because of a difficulty in taking them in via the root system, or lack of non-mobile microelements such as Fe and Zn, responded especially positively to treatment with the fertilizer developed by Sela, with reduced germination times. In young foliage, the fertilizer caused a particularly efficient absorption of microelements, decreasing the time between sprouting and harvest.
The fertilizer, named “ KF- 20 ”, contains components which, dissolving through natural processes, form the best decomposition (beta-humus) and are thus rapidly absorbed by the roots. KF-20 contains components from the following sources:
- Special forest trees
- Desert plants
- Various acids combined using a unique process (amino acids etc)
- Active enzymes (the enzymatic activity takes place both during the preparation of the fertilizer and on the plant itself, after application)
- Minerals
- Proteins
- Carbohydrates
- Trace elements (Microelements)
- Various natural growth factors
Not just a fertilizer – a complete agricultural method
The effectiveness of the fertilizer was gradually recognized by various significant bodies. Soon, large agricultural companies were using the product, and VGI was born. The striving for improvement and the need for constant development and research that was in Sela’s blood was passed to his sons, who continue the work Sela began by distributing the VGI method to farmers and agriculturalists throughout the world.
