The Israeli watermelon has seen a decline in quality, and a sharp decline in sales. Consumers have been complaining about watermelon quality, and sales have gone down 40% in recent years, according to the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Israel produces some 150,000 tons of mostly seedless watermelons, all for the local market. The average Israeli consumes 20 kilograms of watermelon each summer. But both figures are dropping.
What’s more, crop diseases have wiped out entire watermelon patches, turning the remaining watermelons inedible. Now, a three-year research quest by Israel’s Agricultural Research Organization is aiming to find out how to make the Israeli watermelon tastier, and more resilient.
According to an article on calcalistech.com, in their search for more resilient and tastier fruit, the organization’s researchers have taste-tested hundreds of species of watermelons. In one potential breakthrough, researchers have had success with grafting together two species of watermelon, instead of using squash for grafting.
