Odd Convenience

A friend send me an email with the following photo:

Yup. SQUARE watermelons. The explanation is that these melons, grown in Japan, are a response to the tight spaces in Japanese refrigerators. A square melon -- grown in a hinged glass box while on the vine -- is easier to store, ship, and stack. Neat idea.

Well, neat until you realize they retail for about eighty bucks. (Back in 2001, according to this article at CNN).

"But cubic fruit comes with a caveat: Each square watermelon costs 10,000 yen, the equivalent of about $82. Regular watermelons in Japan cost from $15 to $25 each.

At $82 apiece, Winters said she didn't know if there would be a market for square-grown watermelons in the United States.

"I think that's a pretty expensive watermelon," she said. "Maybe they give them as gifts. Maybe it says something for the gift-fruit market, perhaps."

Gift watermelons? Well, probably not.

I found a website that explains how do to it yourself! How cool!