Dameron Valley, Utah — The desert of southwestern Utah is the perfect place to grow wine grapes.
“We’re lucky to have a good water source. It’s a good water source and it’s a good aquifer to pump from,” said John Delaney, one of the owners of Bold & Delaney Winery. “Good ground. It comes from volcanic soil.”
On Wednesday, Delaney’s Winery in Dameron Valley welcomed visitors as part of an agritech event at Utah Tech. They included experts on best practices for growing crops in some of the world’s harshest conditions.
“We are in this beautiful environment that Utah has to offer, where amazing startups from all over the world are coming up with innovative ideas and technologies aimed at improving the way we make food and making deserts bloom.” I came here with a ,” Olu Habib said. It is an investor in Arieli Capital, an Israel-based company that funds agricultural innovations.
Arieli Capital is partnering with Utah Tech on agricultural innovations, including ways to grow crops with less water. Some startups are pitching ideas for funding.
“This will create incredible opportunities for trade, technology such as robotics and techniques that enable brackish water access across water-stressed regions and increase yields, increasing food security and future prospects. It’s an amazing implementation,” Habib said.
As part of the Great Salt Lake Collaboration, FOX 13 News accompanied a state delegation to Israel last year to learn best practices for water conservation, including technological innovations for growing crops in harsh desert conditions. At the Ramat Negev Desert Agricultural Research Center, state water and agriculture officials toured vertical gardens and new drip irrigation technology that uses up to 80 percent less water than traditional pivot sprinkler systems.
Dr. Yuval Kay, who welcomed a state delegation to Israel’s Negev Desert and demonstrated how strawberries are grown in harsh climate conditions, was in southern Utah this week to help.
“We came to Utah to learn about what’s going on here and to interact and build partnerships with academia and industry,” he said.
Dr. Kay said he has observed that there are some things that can be done better to grow crops with less water.
“Here in the wineries? I think we need to bring in more science. So there’s a very similar project being done in Israel to characterize the best varietals for desert wines,” he told FOX 13. told the news.
Agriculture is Utah’s largest water user. The Utah Legislature has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to help farmers switch to new water-saving technologies. The goal is to conserve water throughout the state, but especially in the Great Salt Lake Basin. Lake levels in the Great Salt Lake Basin have fallen to historic lows, threatening public health, the environment, and the economy.
However, switching to these new technologies comes at a cost. The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food is rolling out grants to cover the cost.
Delaney said advances in agritechnology are helping businesses grow better wine grapes.
“When you put sensors in the ground, you can model it in real time and see what kind of moisture is in there, and you can say that the ground is telling the plants that they need more water,” he says. said. “We water the plants more, and that’s something we can actually see directly happening. There’s a lot more technology involved.”
Cooperation between Utah and Israel has also led to business opportunities. Arieli Capital now has an office in the state, where the influence of technology is growing.
“Arieli found a great home here, opened an office here, hired people and invested in some Utah-based technology,” he said.
This article is published through the Great Salt Lake Collaborative. The Great Salt Lake Collaborative is a solutions journalism initiative that partners with news, education, and media organizations to inform people about the plight of the Great Salt Lake and what they can do to make a difference before it’s too late. . Read all articles at greatsaltlakenews.org.
