HACHINOHE, Aomori -- A box of high-end cherries harvested in Aomori Prefecture brought in 600,000 yen in the first auction of the season for the Junoheart variety at the Hachinohe Central Wholesale Market on Saturday.
A box containing 15 large cherries called Aomori Heartbeat, a premier brand of the variety, by far surpassed the previous record of 450,000, yen set just last year. The 600,000 yen price tag, which excluded tax, equates to 40,000 yen per cherry.
The Aomori prefectural government developed the Junoheart variety, which made its debut in 2019.
Fifty boxes containing 15 cherries were put up for bidding at the auction on Saturday, with Aomori Heartbeat cherries fetching 30,000 yen to 600,000, yen and the regular Junoheart variety selling for between 15,000 yen and 150,000 yen.
The highest bidder was Nagatsuka Seika, a Chiba-based fruit and vegetable intermediate wholesaler that also made the record-setting bid for the Aomori cherries last year. The company said the cherries would be sold at a department store in Chiba Prefecture.
"The producer's passion is great, and these cherries can't be found anywhere else," said Kyoko Nagatsuka, president of Nagatsuka Seika.
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