Would you pay HK$3,500 for ONE strawberry? In Japan they do
Speciality producers of the berries are vying to offer the most sought after of several high-end brands
Growers of giant, juicy, sweet strawberries are competing to be Japan's top strawberry brand, reflecting an increase in demand both at home and abroad, as well as efforts to promote local produce and stimulate prefectural economies.
Often bought as a gift item for weddings, birthdays or parties, strawberries can command high prices in Japan where one strawberry can fetch as much as 50,000 yen (HK$3,254) on an online shopping site.
Reflecting heated competition for quality improvement, some 50 new strawberry varieties have been registered in Japan since 2011, bringing the total number of brands to 253 as of March.
Brightly coloured, succulent strawberries are usually sold at Japanese department stores or fruit specialty retailers. Amaou strawberries from Fukuoka Prefecture in southwestern Japan are a front-runner, boasting the highest average sales price per kilogram of about 1,200 yen in 2013 among major domestic producers.
The brand name is a kind of acronym for the Japanese words "akai" (red), "marui" (round), "ookii" (big) and "umai" (delicious).
At Mitsukoshi department store in Tokyo's upscale Ginza shopping district, Amaou strawberries were prominently displayed with price tags ranging from 1,620 yen to 5,400 yen for a box of 10 to 12.
"The taste of Fukuoka's Amaou is an amazing balance of sweet and acid, that's why the variety attracts so many customers," said 47-year-old Toyoharu Komine, head of a Sun Fruits Co shop in the department store, adding the product also attracts tourists from the rest of Asia and Middle Eastern countries.