The kibbutz was founded in 1935 as Plugat HaYam (Hebrew: פלוגת הים, lit. Sea Company) on the dunes near present-day Kiryat Haim, with the goal of getting jobs in the Port of Haifa. In 1938 the kibbutz was moved to the coast in the area of Acre as a "tower and stockade" settlement, and was renamed Mishmar HaYam (Hebrew: משמר הים, lit. Sea Guard). In 1947 the village moved again to its current location, this time a short distance inland on the same agricultural lands, based on the decision to abandon fishing and concentrate exclusively on agriculture. Its current name is derived from the adjacent Tel Afek, a candidate for one of the biblical Apheks (Joshua 19:30).
Afek has 200 members and over 450 residents. The kibbutz operates a preschool and primary school that are open to the public. The kibbutz economy is based on crops, orchards, dairy farming, poultry farming, and fish farming. It also has three factories: Asiv produces fabrics, Mego medical supplies, and Hinnanit dolls and clothing accessories. Hinnanit also exhibits and sells rugs made from the fabric produced on the kibbutz.
