Grow Your Food – Harvest Your Freedom

Resistant Local Economy – Farkha Village, Palestine

Farkha Village, located in the Salfit Governorate of Palestine, has long been known for its deeply rooted agricultural identity. For generations, local families have preserved rich farming traditions and extensive ecological knowledge, maintaining traditional agricultural practices until today.

The village contains approximately 3,000 dunums of agricultural land — nearly half of its total area — despite having a population of only around 1,900 residents. These lands include:

About 1,750 dunums of olive groves
Areas dedicated to almonds, figs, grapes, and other fruit trees
Open-field crops such as wheat and legumes
Rain-fed and irrigated vegetable farming
Home gardens present in nearly every household

Until the mid-1990s, agriculture and livestock were the primary sources of food and income for the village. Nearly all agricultural lands were actively cultivated, and livestock farming was an essential part of daily life.

However, over the years, agriculture in Farkha gradually declined due to several factors, including:

Migration of young people toward urban employment and fast-income jobs
Systematic challenges caused by the Israeli occupation, including:
- Wastewater discharge from nearby settlements
- Release of wild boars that destroy agricultural lands
- Restrictions preventing farmers from accessing large areas of their land
- Continuous land confiscation and settler violence

As a result, many agricultural lands were abandoned, except for some olive groves and household gardens. Despite these challenges, Farkha remains internationally recognized for producing high-quality organic olive oil. Around 400 dunums are officially certified as organic farms, exporting olive oil to several European countries since 2003.

The Land is Our Cooperative – Farkha

In 2019, a group of young people from Farkha established The Land is Our Cooperative – Farkha, a grassroots community initiative aiming to revive agriculture, strengthen food sovereignty, and encourage local self-sufficiency.

The cooperative launched a village-wide campaign under the slogan:

“Grow Your Food – Harvest Your Freedom”

The initiative focuses on restoring home gardens and empowering families to produce their own food using traditional and ecological farming methods.

Between 2019 and 2023:

The number of active home gardens increased from 90 to 230
Seeds and seedlings were distributed annually to local families
Many households achieved partial food self-sufficiency
Community-based exchange and solidarity markets were revived

Today, the cooperative is working to transform these gardens into fully ecological farms.

Reviving Field Agriculture and Livestock

Since 2022, the cooperative has expanded its work to include the restoration of field crops such as:

Wheat
Barley
Legumes

This initiative directly supports the revival of livestock farming, which historically formed a central part of the village economy. In the early 1990s, nearly every household raised sheep and working animals, with an estimated 3,000 sheep across the village.

The results have been remarkable:

10 young farmers returned to field farming in 2023
25 farmers joined in 2024
More than 48 farmers are participating in 2025

This has already contributed to a visible return of livestock breeding in the village.

Current Challenges

One of the biggest threats facing farmers today is the destruction of crops by wild boars released into the area, alongside the absence of effective governmental protection or agricultural support systems.

To confront these challenges, the cooperative launched a collective initiative to fence approximately 52 dunums of agricultural land surrounding the old town area. These lands historically served as the village’s food basket and grazing area.

Protecting and cultivating these lands collectively helps ensure:

Long-term agricultural sustainability
Protection of farmers’ livelihoods
Food sovereignty
Community resilience and connection to the land

Our Vision

We believe that collective farming, ecological agriculture, volunteerism, and local solidarity are essential tools for strengthening Palestinian resilience and preserving the relationship between people and land.

Through community participation and practical action, we are building a living model of resistance through agriculture, self-sufficiency, and cooperation.

The Land is Our Cooperative – Farkha
Farkha Village – Salfit Governorate – Palestine 🇵🇸🌿