Rani Bar Nes, an 80-year-old farmer from Moshav Bitzaron in southern Israel, has been growing fruit for four decades. "Their costs are a quarter of ours, and they sell for half of what we sell," said Bar Nes. He added that Israeli farmers face high water prices, restrictions on pesticide use, and increasing costs of foreign labour. According to Bar Nes, growers are paid NIS 1.20 ($0.36) per kilogram for pomegranates, though retail prices vary widely. Despite the fruit's deep cultural role, Bar Nes warns that cultivation is increasingly unsustainable.