Japan may well be one of the world’s most affluent nations, but the current food crisis is still being felt by the country’s cost-conscious consumers. Butter for example has actually been absent from supermarket shelves in some places, and even the single man with his loyal companions of instant noodles and lager has had to suffer his first price rise in years.
However, if such a fella should sensibly supplement his diet with some fresh but far from exotic fruit, heaven forbid that costs in this department should increase, as a (yes a) measly mango can set a salary man back a phenomenally fruity 8,400 yen (81 dollars).
A figure that arguably makes these similarly priced grapes appear something of a bargain — them coming in a box and numbering more than one.
Cherries on the other hand are another matter all together, as pretty packaging aside, for 12,600 yen (121 dollars), a young man could probably pay less to actually pop his cherry than purchase one.
matt says
Those are gift fruit packages. Part of the appeal is how much you spent to give a gift to someone. It’s not normal to pay 80 bucks for some grapes, unless they say from Alexandria and have a golden ribbon, and you are giving a gift to someone you want to impress. Normal fruit is expensive and getting more so (like a dollar or more for an orange or apple) but it’s not priced like this stuff at the supermarket.
Butter is nowhere to be found, on the other hand.
B says
I was just in Tokyo about a day ago, and purchased both mangoes and grapes for normal, everyday prices right off an abundantly stocked shelf on the street.
But we didn’t find butter to parrot the previous post.
Neil Duckett says
Well it is Isetan isn’t it …. i saw them in my local shop yesterday for 1200 yen.
Gemma says
If only all fruit came packaged like this – maybe some wouldn’t be so reluctant to eat healthy foods.
neko says
Hmmm ok so what’s up with paying 80$ for the package????
Buy a normal 5$ mango (or less, i don’t know the japanese prices) and make a nice packaging yourself…
sometimes i wonder how they manage to sell such expensive fruits 🙂
gb says
that’s one big mango…
freakishhigh says
the price doesn’t only come from the packaging but the quality of the fruit itself is very high i would think. my grandmother brought us some grapes (only $30 not $80 though) and they were seriously divine : ) each grape was so round and big and juicier than anything i’ve eaten anywhere else. so i’m assuming the $80 ones must be amazing. anyone had some?
Oeijur says
I was just in Tokyo, and bought a 1050Y peach from one of the department stores to actually see if it was that good. And it was the best peach I have ever had in my entire life.