Organic almonds sow hope in Palestine

A non-profit is trying help farmers build a profitable almond sector in the West Bank, where water and government aid are in short supply

The West Bank isn't the most obvious location for almond farming. For starters, water and land are in short supply in the heavily contested region and almonds are notoriously thirsty. Much of the traditional knowledge associated with almond production in the region has been lost. And government help is in short supply too.

"As you might imagine, in the occupied Palestine territories we don't have strong [government] institutions. So there's no real agricultural research or reliable, efficient extension services," says Samer Jarrar, director of the non-profit Canaan Center for Organic Research and Extension (CORE), which is trying to promote the region's almond sector.