In order to handle the gathering and sale of the produce arising from the accelerated expansion of irrigated cultivation in the fields of these kibbutzim, YHAM was founded in 1956 as an agricultural cooperative association of 10 kibbutzim in the Western Negev.
A joint venture was created with the aim of creating the infrastructure necessary for success in the segment of marketing the produce from the producer to the consumer, including a supply chain, while the kibbutzim were engaged in developing agrotechnical and agrogenetic methods to develop advanced field agriculture that produces products in demand. The kibbutzim worked with the assistance of the settling bodies and the state's research and training institutions.