Scientists in Israel have developed a hi-tech spray to help farmers to keep their plants cool.
It’s a potential game-changer in a world where temperatures are rising and plants increasingly suffer “thermal stress”, when they get too hot and yield fewer fruit.
In recent decades farmers have used chemicals known as dormancy breakers. They fool plants in warm-winter climates to bud early, before they’ve received enough natural “chill hours”.
But the use of hydrogen cyanamide, the most popular dormancy breaker, has been banned or heavily restricted in the UK, EU and some US states because it’s highly toxic to humans.
Cooling Crops, a startup based in Jerusalem, takes an entirely different, safer and more effective approach. And one that is better for the environment.
It has developed a patented, sprayable powder that radiates heat and reduces the temperatures of plants by 3C to 6C.
The farmer sprays their apples, grapes, kiwi, walnuts or other crops once a season – or in the days before an expected heatwave – and it creates a microscopic, protective “shield” on the surface of both the soil and plants,
The key to how it works is nanotechnology, the science of manipulating individual atoms and molecules that can measure as little as 0.000001mm.
The research team at Cooling Crops took the proven physical principle that is used to cool rooftops – specially engineered coatings for buildings that combat heat – and applied them to agriculture.
“I think something about Israeli innovation is that we love to take a solution from one problem space that succeeded or had some kind of a breakthrough, and apply it to other fields,” said Sagi Sheinkman, the company’s CEO.
“We are bringing this phenomenon to the agricultural space in a sustainable, biodegradable way.”
He and his team have designed a formula that radiates the sun’s heat back into the atmosphere through a “clear window” without it getting trapped by greenhouse gases such as CO2. There is a dual benefit here. Not only does the farmer increase their yield because the plants are cool and thriving, but it’s good for the planet. The spray actively removes heat from Earth’s surface by radiating it directly into space.
It also restores degraded soils by forming a biological crust that cuts erosion by more than 80 per cent.
Cooling Crops is currently trialling the spray, mostly on grapes (table and wine) in Israel, as well as kiwi, apples and pears, and hopes to launch it commercially in 2028.
Sheinkman says he expects it to increase yields by as much as 30 per cent. He said: “We are not aware of anyone doing something similar. We know that there are all kinds of solutions that require heavy infrastructure – installing water pipes below the ground, and all kinds of fans with the water evaporative cooling effect.”
But his company’s alternative is far simpler – a powder that the farmer mixes with water and sprays onto their crops using standard equipment.
Cooling Crops says it will target countries that restrict the use of dormancy breakers, many of which have been forced to increase food imports as a result, as well as those where they remain legal.
“The dormancy breaker market is estimated be around $3 billion (£2.2 billion) annually and this is the market that we’re competing with,” said Sheinkman.
Coolingcrops.com is currently seeking investors for a $3.5 million (£2.6 million) round of seed funding.
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