These melons were auctioned for whopping Rs 20 lakh in Japan; here’s why

Yubari melons are considered as status symbol in Japan and can cost as much as a high-end brand new luxury car in India.

Written by FE News Desk

May 29, 2018 19:30 IST

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When one considers Japan's ageing population, one realises that the demand for fixed coupon paying assets such as bank deposits will only increase in the country. (Reuters)

Yubari melons are considered as status symbol in Japan and can cost as much as a high-end brand new luxury car in India. In the first auction of the season, the pair of fruits was sold for as much as Rs 20 lakh at a wholesale market named Sapporo in Japan. The bid was more than twice as much as what was paid in the first auction of Yubari melons in 2017 and outstripped the all-time high of around Rs 18 lakh set in 2016, reported The Japan Times. The winner of the auction was Hokuyu Pack, President of Shinya Noda, a fruit and vegetable packing company. He wanted to celebrate 30th anniversary of his company through this win. The melons were bought as a summer gift for Hokuyu Pack’s customers and clients.

The winner has also announced that the melons will be on display till month end and after that the pieces of melons will be distributed for free.

Yubari melons

The Yubari King is a cantaloupe cultivar farmed in greenhouses in Yubari, Hokkaido, a small city close to Sapporo. The Yubari King is a hybrid of two other cantaloupe cultivars: Earl’s Favourite and Burpee’s “Spicy” Cantaloupe. A top-grade melon is to be perfectly round and have an exceptionally smooth rind. A portion of the stem, which is snipped with scissors, is left on top for aesthetic appeal.Some Japanese people present Yubari King melons as gifts during Chūgen.

At a Japanese auction in 2008, two Yubari King melons sold together for nearly Rs 15 lakh. In 2016, Konishi Seika, a fruit and vegetable market in Amagasaki, bought a pair of Yubari King melons at auction with a winning bid of nearly 18 lakh.

This article was first uploaded on May twenty-nine, twenty eighteen, at thirty minutes past seven in the evening.