The Woman Who Cares About Israel's Food Security

In the past year and a half, businesswoman and entrepreneur Adv. Ada Bar Kama has succeeded in buying the cannabis company Cannassure from the public company in which she was a controlling shareholder, injecting real estate activity into its stock exchange shell, [the Hebrew doesn't make sense] buying the other half of the large Solbar company, and becoming its full owner. "It wasn't easy, it was complex and challenging, and at the same time huge fun and a great deal of satisfaction," she declares. This is just one example of why for her the word "No" is just the beginning, and something that increases motivation to achieve "Yes."

Bar Kama is married to a former fighter pilot and today a businessman, and she is a proud mother of two soldiers, one a combat soldier serving in an elite unit, and the other a simulator instructor in the Air Force. "They're the best thing I've ever done. As a mother, often I wasn't present, but when we were together we had the best quality time. They're the love of my life and very special," she says. The fact that she holds degrees in industrial engineering and management, business administration, and law firmly establishes her rich experience in the business field. As far as she's concerned, the jewel in the crown, on the business side, was the acquisition of the large Solbar company, the last and only oil and oilcake production plant in Israel, which is a very important layer in the food security of Israel.

How were you able, as a woman in manufacturing, which is still considered a male field, to deploy such significant activity?
"I have always been a woman in a man's world, as CEO and director of quite a few companies and leading ventures in a field where the male sex still dominates. And that means not getting excited, being strong, and carrying on. Not delaying. Difficulty never deterred me and certainly didn't stop me. Whining is not an action plan. The industrial world is indeed a tough male world, but I'm also very tough."

"At this point, I want to tell every woman, wherever she may be, that it doesn't matter whether you're a woman or a man. If you want to advance and reach senior positions in general and in industry in particular, don't make assumptions or ask for privileges. When I managed businesses abroad as a mother of young children, I sometimes traveled to other countries three times a month. My husband was there by my side, but I decided from an early age that I wanted to be in the business and industry world, "all in," as they say, and I worked hard. For anyone who wants to shatter the glass ceiling, it's important to remember that there are no shortcuts and that she must choose hard work and fully commit to it."

How do you leverage being a strong woman who runs essential factories to ensure Israel's food security?
"Through Solbar, which manages the last and only plant for the production of oilcake and oil, which are so essential to the food security of the State of Israel. The company has about 120 employees, two plants, in Ashdod and Ashkelon, and supports hundreds more people who work closely with it. The enterprise was in danger after the state decided to lower protective tariffs. This is after the state already lowered customs duties on oil about a year ago, which greatly harmed the company and at least didn't in the least reduce the price of oil to the consumer, but helped only importers. In the end, and after a "battle" with the state, it was rightly decided to leave protective customs for oilcake products, which helped our enterprise—the only one left here."

"The soybean oil produced by the company is found in every refrigerator and kitchen in hundreds of food products, in chicken and eggs. In addition, this product and the oilcake, the raw materials we produce, feed farm animals, especially poultry. In this way, the institutional market and farmers have access to a rich source of protein. This is why the very small customs assistance from the state nevertheless helps, however little, to compete with giant factories around the world that operate in a constant production mode, without interruptions. Moreover, in the rest of the world, plants don't stop working on Shabbat, as we do, which reduces the company's profitability. Despite all this, and despite the low profitability, we continue to operate with all our might. We didn't stop production even once during the coronavirus and the war."

"As the head of a company that protects the food security of Israel, even during the coronavirus, during the Ukraine-Russia war, and now during the dangerous security situation resulting from the Iron Swords War, I would like to emphasize how important it is for the state to define a clear goal of expanding industrial and agricultural activity, which contribute greatly to food security. Today, more than ever before, we are exposed to how significant independence in this field is and how important it is to encourage blue-and-white products. This means that we must not strangle industry, poultry producers, and farmers but encourage their activity with subsidies, incentives, and assistance that will obviate the need to rely only on imports from abroad. This is especially true given that there is almost no industry left in Israel, and agriculture has also shrunk considerably. Today, more than ever, everyone sees how necessary it is to have independent, high-quality blue-and-white production in Israel."

How did you manage to continue operating during the first days of the war and subsequently?
"From the evening of October 7, we have been working. This is despite the fact that some of our employees were drafted immediately, including senior management. The manager of the Ashkelon facility, located in the first line of fire, was on reserve duty from October 8 until about two weeks ago, but our dedicated employees did not stay at home and backed up everyone who needed replacing. Everyone came to work every day, including the staff in Ashkelon, when there were still terrorists in the vicinity, under missile threats, with sirens in the background. Thus we continued to work and produce, with the understanding that we have a responsibility as an essential enterprise that operates even in times of emergency and is supposed to ensure a continuous supply of oil and oilcake, even in times of war. To make available our services and products to all who require it and to supply the oil and mixtures to all our customers, we have been transporting the goods throughout the country during the war and under missile attacks. In addition, we keep emergency stocks in case of war for the state, without monetary compensation or any subsidy for it. Even inside our home, we have done everything in our power to provide financial and emotional assistance to all employees who live in the area, whose homes or spouse's wages have been affected."

Cannabis challenges
The challenges that Bar Kama describes are reflected in another company she manages, Cannassure, that deals with medical cannabis. "In the past, our ownership of this public company was 50%; today I have full ownership. Until I got to run the company, about two and a half years ago, it lost about NIS 18 million a year, for several years. When I arrived, already in the first year, I led a massive streamlining process that included laying off the entire management and about 100 employees, all without harming productivity. I downsized the company significantly and rebuilt it. We have the first indoor facility in Israel. We were pioneers in growing in closed structures rather than greenhouses. There, too, we became more efficient and began to grow much more significant amounts. Thus, after two quarters we were earning gross profit, later operating profit, and a year later net profit. After the cannabis market crashed, we remained one of the few companies still operating in the market."

In this field as well, there are few women in general, and fewer reach senior positions
"True, there are almost no women in the aggressive cannabis market, and here too there are quite a few challenges, especially since the export reform was not carried out early on. But we continue with all our might to provide a cannabis solution, especially today because the plant has proven effective in treating trauma, anxiety, and situations in general like the ones in which many residents of the country have been in recent times. Therefore, the state must understand that it must find a way to help the cannabis industry recover, to provide solutions and tools for treating the populations that suffer so much."

Development overseas as well
Bar Kama has been engaged for many years in business development and entrepreneurship in the international market. "My job was to open international markets for Israeli companies, appoint agents and distributors in every country on the planet, penetrate new markets, large chains, buy competitors, and promote collaborations," she says, emphasizing that this is her way of opening as many sales doors as possible for Israeli companies.

One of the moves that she boasts has changed the European market is the transition from glass greenhouses, which have been the only ones in existence for decades, to plastic greenhouses. This was achieved through the establishment of Palram Applications, a subsidiary of Palram Plastics, in Kibbutz Ramat Yohanan. "This is how we changed the home greenhouse market, mainly in Europe, and in the next stages in the rest of the world, from a glass market to a plastic market," she explains, adding that the company has been selling about NIS 100 million each year already in its early years of operation.

Making a dream come true: Caring for a disappearing sea
Bar Kama admits that despite all her achievements, she has another goal that she has been interested in achieving since childhood. "My dream is to save the Dead Sea, and for that I dream of establishing a dedicated forum," she says, adding: "Everyone dismisses the issue of the disappearing sea, which is a shame. In my opinion, the minister of the environment is no less important than the defense minister, because this is our security that should serve future generations. This is a different kind of security but no less important. Thus, if we do not protect the environment, and among others, a rare resource such as the Dead Sea that continues to dry up, this is a sign of an across-the-board failure to preserve the beauty and goodness that the State of Israel and its natural resources have to offer."

It all started in Lebanon
Bar Kama served as a radar operator and commander in the army, on the Lebanese border, where she developed an understanding of how to act in any situation. "As someone who managed a team of young women who together held a line, and whose responsibility was to maintain the sector, I understood how to define the goal first, then act according to it. Every evening, before setting out on our missions, we would recite the sentence: 'The goal is to defend the northern settlements,' and this is what I do to this day, in life, and especially in the business world. First I define the goal, and then I act," she concludes.

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