Dry orchards raise prices

ISRAEL – Fruit growers are being forced to destroy roughly 10% of all fruit groves in Israel irrigated with potable water.

Water allocations have been slashed by 40 million cubic meters, according to Ilan Eshel, director of the Organization of Fruit Growers in Israel.

According to the organization calculations, the sector’s annual output could drop by 150,000 tons, and farmers revenues from the sale of fruit are likely to be hit by NIS 100 million annually. Consumers will feel the ramifications in the cost of fruits in 2009, when they rise by 35% to 50%, and for some fruits, 100%.

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Source : Haaretz.com / The Marker