Premium apples in north Japan fetch 100,000 yen in season's 1st auction

HAKODATE, Hokkaido (Kyodo) -- A box of seven highly prized apples from northern Japan s main island, Hokkaido, sold for a record 100,000 yen ($630) at the first auction of the season on Friday. The bidding price matched the cost of the priciest batch from last year. Buyers convened at a local wholesale market in Hakodate to compete for the red-tinged yellow Nanamitsuki apples, a fruit originating from the town of Nanae, believed to be Japan's inaugural location to cultivate western-style apples.

According to the Shinhakodate Agricultural Cooperative, this year's apples are larger and less damaged than in the previous year, when many were ruined by typhoons. Yuji Sotozaki, a 46-year-old fruit and vegetable intermediary wholesaler from Hakodate who placed the highest bid, expressed his enthusiasm, stating, "They have honey cores and are very good.

Please give them a try if you find them in a store." Nanamitsuki belongs to the Gunma meigetsu variety, with fruits exceeding a specific level of sweetness and size labeled as premium. Premium fruits frequently achieve exorbitant prices during initial auctions in Japan, with purchasers utilizing successful bids for promotional purposes.