Shluhot
Encyclopedia
Shluhot is an Orthodox
kibbutz
in the Beit She'an Valley in northern Israel
. Located about three kilometres south of the city of Beit She'an, it falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council.
Zionist youth movement
. In the beginning, a temporary joint camp was set up with a group from the Hashomer Hatzair
youth movement. Shortly thereafter, when each group received land to build separate kibbutzim, the secular members of the group formed the adjacent kibbutz of Reshafim
. The kibbutz is one of four religious kibbutzim that are located in a cluster south of Beit She'an stretching from Shluhot at the base of the Mount Gilboa through Ein HaNatziv
and Sde Eliyahu
until Tirat Zvi
adjacent to the Jordan River.
The kibbutz was founded on the land of the depopulated Palestinian
village of Al-Ashrafiyya
.
Today, the kibbutz population numbers about 120 families, including 350 people.
In the early years of the kibbutz, virtually all activity was centred around the various agricultural branches. In the last few decades though, talented kibbutz members have initiated new endeavours in order to vary revenue sources, as well as providing different employment options. Today the kibbutz employs mainly kibbutz members and kibbutz youth (after school and during the summer), residents who are not members, residents of Beit Shean and surrounding areas, and temporary volunteers. The kibbutz revenues come from agriculture
, light manufacturing
, and tourism
.
The majority of Shluhot's revenues come from various agricultural branches, produce
and livestock
, due to the expertise of kibbutz members and continuing improvement in efficiency and productivity. The dairy farm, poultry
(turkey
and chicken
coops), date farming
, fish farming
, orchard
s, and produce
farming are still an important part of the kibbutz revenues and kibbutz employment opportunities. Shluhot also has a new carrot
processing factory and enjoys a significant minority market share in the local carrot market. In 2007, a cow from the dairy farm broke the Israeli record for most births, 14.
The kibbutz has a number of factories; one of the oldest is Microvue which produces microfilm readers/scanners, mostly for export. Microvue is one of the few microfilm reader manufacturers left in the world. Sheletron, founded in 1996, produces electronic display solutions through text, pictures, video, and animation on LCD screens. Remote control of the displays is possible through unique software developed in the company development centre.
In the early nineties, the kibbutz renovated a small former residential apartment building and turned it into a bed and breakfast
, mainly geared for the Orthodox
Jewish market. The kibbutz has since added a wider variety of rooming accommodations, now ranging from single rooms to multiple-room housing units. In the year 1996, several former immigrants (olim) from North America
founded a summer camp
called Kayitz Bakibbutz, (in Hebrew "Summer on the kibbutz"), based on the typical 'American' sleepaway summer camp
experience geared toward youth, something virtually unheard of in Israel at that time. The camp provides multiple week sessions based on overnight rooming, and including sports, swimming, arts and crafts
and various other activities.
The kibbutz also has a metalwork shop, which designs and produces a variety of machines mainly for agricultural use.
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
kibbutz
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
in the Beit She'an Valley in northern Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. Located about three kilometres south of the city of Beit She'an, it falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council.
History
Shluhot was founded in 1948 by former members of the Bnei AkivaBnei Akiva
Bnei Akiva is the largest religious Zionist youth movement in the world, with over 125,000 members in 37 countries. It was established in Mandate Palestine in 1929.-History:...
Zionist youth movement
Zionist youth movement
A Zionist youth movement is an organization formed for Jewish children and adolescents for educational, social, and ideological development, including a belief in Jewish nationalism as represented in the State of Israel...
. In the beginning, a temporary joint camp was set up with a group from the Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair is a Socialist–Zionist youth movement founded in 1913 in Galicia, Austria-Hungary, and was also the name of the group's political party in the Yishuv in the pre-1948 British Mandate of Palestine...
youth movement. Shortly thereafter, when each group received land to build separate kibbutzim, the secular members of the group formed the adjacent kibbutz of Reshafim
Reshafim
Reshafim is a kibbutz in northeastern Israel. Located two kilometres to the south of the town of Beit She'an in the Beit She'an Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council. The kibbutz has about 270 members, 50 non-member residents, and 100 children.-History:The...
. The kibbutz is one of four religious kibbutzim that are located in a cluster south of Beit She'an stretching from Shluhot at the base of the Mount Gilboa through Ein HaNatziv
Ein HaNatziv
Ein HaNatziv is a kibbutz in the Bet She'an Valley in Israel. Located about three kilometers south of the ancient city of Beit She'an, it is 130 meters below sea level. The kibbutz, a member of the Religious Kibbutz Movement, has a population of 700...
and Sde Eliyahu
Sde Eliyahu
Sde Eliyahu is a religious kibbutz in northern Israel. Located 5 km south of Beit She'an, it falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council.-History:...
until Tirat Zvi
Tirat Zvi
Tirat Zvi is a religious kibbutz in the Beit She'an Valley, ten kilometers south of the city of Beit She'an, Israel, just west of the Jordan River and the Israel-Jordan border. It falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council. In 2006, the kibbutz had a population of...
adjacent to the Jordan River.
The kibbutz was founded on the land of the depopulated Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
village of Al-Ashrafiyya
Al-Ashrafiyya
Al-Ashrafiyya was a Palestinian Arab village in the District of Baysan. It was depopulated during the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine. It was located 4.5 km southwest of Baysan.The village was depopulated on May 12, 1948 during Operation Gideon...
.
Today, the kibbutz population numbers about 120 families, including 350 people.
Economy
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, light manufacturing
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
, and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
.
The majority of Shluhot's revenues come from various agricultural branches, produce
Produce
Produce is a generalized term for a group of farm-produced goods and, not limited to fruits and vegetables . More specifically, the term "produce" often implies that the products are fresh and generally in the same state as where they were harvested. In supermarkets the term is also used to refer...
and livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
, due to the expertise of kibbutz members and continuing improvement in efficiency and productivity. The dairy farm, poultry
Poultry
Poultry are domesticated birds kept by humans for the purpose of producing eggs, meat, and/or feathers. These most typically are members of the superorder Galloanserae , especially the order Galliformes and the family Anatidae , commonly known as "waterfowl"...
(turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
coops), date farming
Date Palm
The date palm is a palm in the genus Phoenix, cultivated for its edible sweet fruit. Although its place of origin is unknown because of long cultivation, it probably originated from lands around the Persian Gulf. It is a medium-sized plant, 15–25 m tall, growing singly or forming a clump with...
, fish farming
Fish (food)
Fish is a food consumed by many species, including humans. The word "fish" refers to both the animal and to the food prepared from it. Fish has been an important source of protein for humans throughout recorded history.-Terminology:...
, orchard
Orchard
An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit or nut-producing trees which are grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive...
s, and produce
Produce
Produce is a generalized term for a group of farm-produced goods and, not limited to fruits and vegetables . More specifically, the term "produce" often implies that the products are fresh and generally in the same state as where they were harvested. In supermarkets the term is also used to refer...
farming are still an important part of the kibbutz revenues and kibbutz employment opportunities. Shluhot also has a new carrot
Carrot
The carrot is a root vegetable, usually orange in colour, though purple, red, white, and yellow varieties exist. It has a crisp texture when fresh...
processing factory and enjoys a significant minority market share in the local carrot market. In 2007, a cow from the dairy farm broke the Israeli record for most births, 14.
The kibbutz has a number of factories; one of the oldest is Microvue which produces microfilm readers/scanners, mostly for export. Microvue is one of the few microfilm reader manufacturers left in the world. Sheletron, founded in 1996, produces electronic display solutions through text, pictures, video, and animation on LCD screens. Remote control of the displays is possible through unique software developed in the company development centre.
In the early nineties, the kibbutz renovated a small former residential apartment building and turned it into a bed and breakfast
Bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...
, mainly geared for the Orthodox
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
Jewish market. The kibbutz has since added a wider variety of rooming accommodations, now ranging from single rooms to multiple-room housing units. In the year 1996, several former immigrants (olim) from North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
founded a summer camp
Summer camp
Summer camp is a supervised program for children or teenagers conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as campers....
called Kayitz Bakibbutz, (in Hebrew "Summer on the kibbutz"), based on the typical 'American' sleepaway summer camp
Summer camp
Summer camp is a supervised program for children or teenagers conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as campers....
experience geared toward youth, something virtually unheard of in Israel at that time. The camp provides multiple week sessions based on overnight rooming, and including sports, swimming, arts and crafts
Arts and crafts
Arts and crafts comprise a whole host of activities and hobbies that are related to making things with one's hands and skill. These can be sub-divided into handicrafts or "traditional crafts" and "the rest"...
and various other activities.
The kibbutz also has a metalwork shop, which designs and produces a variety of machines mainly for agricultural use.