Listed below are my career’s foremost milestones:

• Katif Tomatoes – Operations Manager. A 17 ha. initiative of growing tomatoes, using advanced GH technologies for Mediterranean climate cultivation.
  I was responsible for the technology, facilities, production, marketing, and the exportation of tomatoes to the EU [1986-1989]
• Katif Nurseries – General Manager – development, establishment, and management of the largest nursery in Israel for house and pot plants. Katif Nurseries incorporates 16 ha. of advanced greenhouses, and 10 ha. of net houses [1989- 1998].
• Katif Agriculture LTD.
  • Director at ‘Leafy Greens’ – the export division of Katif Agriculture LTD., specializing in fresh herbs and greens for the European and US markets [1989-1991].
  • Director at the orange and tropical fruit orchards spanning 1,500 ha., potato and jojoba with 2,300 ha., and other field crops cultivated in Israel’s Negev region [1993-2003].
  • Project Manager and a member of the founding team establishing one of Israel’s largest and most advanced dairy farms. I was in charge of the regulatory aspects and directly involved in the planning and development phases, up until the farm was fully operational [1994-1998].

1999-2019 – Pelemix LTD.

In 1999, together with a couple of close friends, I founded Pelemix LTD. [www.pelemix.com]. To date, a world-leading coir producer with production sites in four continents. After establishing itself in the Israeli market and expanding to a few nearby abroad markets, in 2005, we made a strategic decision – to develop our global market activity.
In 2006, I began building the infrastructure and networks for global marketing and sales.

Currently, specializing in the production and marketing of high-end coco coir products and mixed substrates for commercial users in the horticulture industry worldwide, Pelemix has coir production sites in Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand, as well as a state-of-the-art substrate facility in Spain.  

Until the end of 2019, I served as Director of Marketing and Sales at Pelemix Global, the international Marketing and sales division of Pelemix, working in more than 25 countries. The main duties & goal was market penetration with emphasis on meeting long-term sales objectives, which required identifying developing markets and crops, attuning products to the markets, the establishment of marketing and sales infrastructure, application of strategies and building business networks along with recruiting and training local personnel, sales agents, and distributors.

Over the years, I have been fortunate to practice, apply, and experience crop cultivation management from a diversity of angles. Noting trends, emerging technologies, markets, and methods, I learned how to match between them with considerable success.    

With almost three decades of hands-on experience in agriculture, predominantly horticulture, my specialty is identifying the right market for a specific product, or crop at the right time. Including the application of marketing and sales strategies in a particular region and meeting business and financial objectives. I bring comprehensive practical knowledge and in-depth know-how about crop behaviors and cultivation methods in different climates, technologies, and markets. Additionally, the abundant, long-lasting, meaningful business connections I made have contributed to building a sound foundation for success.

Equipped, updated, and connected, I guide professionally and ably lead local and global horticulture initiatives, achieving projects’ targets and producing the desired results for the win of all parties involved.

GrowInnovation, with its specialist team, is happy and ready to join your horticulture journey and harvest success. Committed, hard-working, and professional, we are experts at identifying needs and matching them with the right technologies and solutions. Achieving your goals, we safely drive your company or venture to where you want it to be.

I look forward to meeting you.

With warm regards,

Eli Shalmon
Founder & CEO