Gideon Bickel

Gideon Bickel (גדעון ביקל; Born May 12, 1944) is an Israeli businessman. His key interest is agricultural and food production programs for developing countries, which he believes can help to establishment peace between Israel and its neighbors. Bickel was the owner of Flora Stock Exchange in Belgium. He was chairman and owner of Carmel Agrexco.

Biography
Gideon Bickel finished undergraduate studies in agronomy at the Hebrew University. He has several master degrees, and he holds a doctorate in social sciences from the University of Haifa. In addition, he graduated the National Security College with honors.

Bickel is a retired colonel (in reserve duty) in the IDF, a commander in the paratroopers and was wounded in Six Day war during the break to Jerusalem. He served in Yom Kippur war and in the first Lebanon war, in 1982.

Bickel lives in Kfar Malal. He is married and has one daughter.

Business career
Bickel began his business career in 1968 as a farmer and exporter of agricultural produce. In 1997 acquired Flora, the flower exchange in Belgium, which was sold after six years of operation to a Belgian shopping center. In 2011, Bickel purchased Agrexco, an agricultural export company  owned by the Government of Israel and the Plants Board. Under his directorship, the company was renamed Carmel Agrexco.

Bickel is the owner of Hadarim, a shopping mall in Netanya.

Public positions
Bickel served in 1987 as a representative of Israel Bonds in the US and Canada. In 1989 he was the chairman of the agricultural strategy committee established by the Government of Israel, and was on the board of directors of Agridev, which developed and provided agricultural knowledge to countries around the world. Bickel is the founder and the first president of Bnei Arazim, a volunteer association for children’s care. Bickel was a member of the Israel Export Institute. Bickel was a member of numerous trade exchanges, such as the Chamber of Commerce Israel-US, Chamber of Commerce Israel-Germany, Chamber of Commerce Israel-Japan, Chamber of Commerce Israel-Britain and Chamber of Commerce Israel-Jordan.

Bickel served as a chairman of the agricultural committee to interaction between Israel and the Arabs of Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, attended peace conferences in Sharm el-Sheikh, Casablanca, Amman, Cairo, Qatar and the peace conference at Harvard Business School, and assisted in setting up high-tech agricultural projects in Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia.

Bickel has accompanied prime Ministers and presidents on tours around the world as an agricultural expert.

Awards and recognition
Bickel won the 1989 Kaplan Award for Breakthrough in growing flowers for export. He has received a certificate of appreciation from the Chamber of Commerce for his contribution to the development of free enterprise and a certificate of appreciation from the Minister of Agriculture for his work in strategic agricultural planning.