Greenhouses in Papua New Guinea • Photo by LR Group
By Abigail Koper
For nearly four decades, LR Group has been at the forefront of rural development, addressing the pressing challenges arising from a growing global population and limited resources. With a strong commitment to sustainability, LR Group has undertaken numerous transformative projects worldwide.
Noga Lustig
Photo by Roni Herman
Tackling the critical issues of global hunger, energy deficiency, and limited access to clean water, LR Group has established projects in developing countries across various fields such as food security, agriculture, water management, clean energy, and healthcare. Collaborating closely with local communities, governments, sustainable funds and private investors. These initiatives leverage cutting-edge technologies developed in Israel.
By integrating innovative solutions, LR Group empowers communities and enhances their resilience. These projects prioritize long-term sustainability and have a lasting impact on the livelihoods of those involved. LR Group’s dedication to sustainable development continues to drive positive change, providing hope for a more equitable and prosperous future.
“Our vision is to help local communities thrive by helping them build a whole ecosystem around their human and natural resources”, said Noga Lustig, the CFO of the Herzliya, Israel-based firm. “This in turn improves their standard of living by providing them access to the most basic amenities, trains them with the necessary tools for self-sufficiency”.
Helping villages and regions battle aridity and famine
“For over 30 years, LR Group, owned by Israeli entrepreneurs Ami Lustig and Roy Ben Yami, has been focusing on advanced Rural Development methodologies and practices, to create secure sources of food, water, energy, and health for rural populations, enhancing their livelihood and economic growth”, said Lustig.
“LR has been involved in impact projects since 1985, making vision reality by delivering the major SDG’s (Sustainable Development Goals) determined by the UNGA (United Nations Development Group).
“LR took the advantage of the Israeli agriculture settlement experience”, Lustig said. “When Israel was founded 75 years ago, its settlers faced the stark reality of a land that had an acute shortage of natural resources. There was no agriculture, no water, no food security.
“Israel has a relative advantage in tackling rural development”, Lustig said. “The nation had to create everything from scratch, create its own food security, which was based on agricultural rural communities. LUNUsing ingenuity and developing innovative technologies, these rural settlements were instrumental in jumpstarting the nation’s economy in the 1950s”.
Roy Ben Yami and Ami Lustig • Photo by Eli Atias.
It is this out-of-the-box thinking and knowledge that LR Group has been exporting to nations around the world, including to African and South American regions, Asia, and Oceania, helping locals set up a long list of prosperous ventures and the infrastructure for economic and social growth.
“The firm’s access to the most advanced Israeli technologies and methodologies and its focus on bringing economic and social independence to the communities it works with are what make LR Group so unique”, Lustig said.
“We tailor projects to stakeholders’ needs from inception to conclusion”, explained Lustig: “from the initial feasibility study to providing the finance, engineering, procurement, and construction teams, through operation, marketing and management of the project. Our teams sometimes continue to work on the project for a number of years post completion, to ensure that all ventures are sustainable”, she said.
Among its projects, LR Group initiated the setting up of a global cocoa company focused on improving key elements in cocoa production and processing. Bean & Co today has cocoa plantations in South America, Africa and Oceania that provide extension services to smallholders, enabling them to triple the yield and increase revenues from their plantations. By up-cycling the whole cacao fruit, which enables the production not only of cacao beans but also of fibers and cacao pulp, it turning waste into food.
An agro-industrial center in the Democratic Republic of Congo • Photo by LR Group
Over $2.5 billion worth of sustainable development projects globally
LR Group has also specialized in deploying off-grid solutions for health, education, and commerce in remote areas. The E-Cube, a container equipped with solar panels, produces its own electricity to provide essential services such as medical clinics, online study centers and communal refrigerator rooms. The first E-Cube was launched in Nigeria and several more will be placed in Cameron, Papua New Guinea, and Colombia. An additional development created by LR Group is a tailor-made Solar Power Irrigation and Fertilization System, which enables small farmhouses and large-scale agricultural projects worldwide to produce a second annual cycle of crops, in the dry season, cutting back on the high costs and environmental impact of diesel generated irrigation.
Over the years, LR Group has set up over $2.5 billion worth of sustainable development projects globally, with over 100 projects in the agricultural industry and rural development, helping boost yield per hectare by an average of four times.
“We have established a superb track-record of sustainable projects created through our joint ventures with local communities”, said Lustig. “Our objective is to foster self-sufficiency in every community, ensuring their independence while minimizing reliance on imports. As we embark on this mission, we recognize that there are still numerous formidable challenges we need to overcome.”
For more information:
Website: lr-group.com
Email: noga@lr-group.com
Phone: +972-9-9612000
