Dates are a traditional and important part of the sustainable arid food system. As their popularity is growing worldwide, along with global climate change, there is an increasing need for a better understanding of the environmental aspects of the date production system. Israel is one of the major sources of the Medjool variety of dates. We use an environmental “footprint family” framework to analyze Medjool date production, and direct and indirect environmental interactions, and identify positive and negative hotspots. The research focuses on the Israeli Arava desert region. We found that producing 1 ton of marketable dates has an average material footprint of 1550 kg, a land footprint of 1 m², and a water footprint of 2450 m³, which leads to 990 kg of solid waste and a carbon footprint of 4820 kg of CO_2eq. The cultivation stage was responsible for most of the footprints, mainly due to the direct and indirect consequences of fertilizer usage and water production and intake. The significant differences between the plantations were traced back to their varying mix of palms’ age and even more to the human factor and the cultivation methods of individual farmers. We suggest that the environmental footprint of dates can be reduced by adopting improved agricultural methods, such as lower-impact fertilizers and renewable energy. This paper is one of the first to embrace a systematic approach to analyzing dates grown in a desert area. These data can bridge the knowledge gap over the unique food system and crop and, therefore, can provide an initial data body for future research, policy-makers, and farmers as means to advance more efficient, less-intensive use of resources while enhancing production in arid areas and support local and global food security.

枣子是可持续干旱食物系统的传统和重要组成部分。随着它们在全球范围内的普及以及全球气候变化，人们越来越需要更好地了解枣生产系统的环境方面。以色列是 Medjool 枣品种的主要来源之一。我们使用环境“足迹族”框架来分析 Medjool 枣生产，以及直接和间接的环境相互作用，并确定积极和消极的热点。该研究的重点是以色列阿拉瓦沙漠地区。我们发现，生产 1 吨适销枣的平均材料足迹为 1550 kg，土地足迹为 1 m ²，水足迹为 2450 m ³，这会导致 990 公斤固体废物和 4820 公斤 CO _{2eq的碳足迹}. 耕作阶段是造成大部分足迹的原因，主要是由于肥料使用和水的生产和摄入的直接和间接后果。种植园之间的显着差异可以追溯到它们不同的棕榈树年龄组合，甚至更多的是人为因素和个体农民的耕作方法。我们建议通过采用改进的农业方法（例如影响较小的肥料和可再生能源）来减少枣的环境足迹。本文是最早采用系统方法来分析沙漠地区生长的日期的论文之一。这些数据可以弥合独特的粮食系统和作物的知识差距，因此可以为未来的研究、政策制定者和农民提供一个初步的数据主体，作为提高效率的手段，