My friend Heather from Massachusetts sent me this video about Japan’s production of square watermelon. What a waste. Growing the watermelon takes up water, nutrients, etc. that could otherwise go to growing actual consumable food. As much as 1/3 of the food produced in the world each year goes to waste. They grow these watermelon knowing full well they are not going to be eatable, so they instantly become part of that statistic. I get that they look cool, but do we really need to spend $100 to have a square inedible fruit conversation piece. I don’t get it.
Anyway, you all know how I feel about food waste. The average American family throws away nearly $1500 worth of groceries each year. I don’t know about you, but I would rather have that $1500 to, I don’t know, fly someplace new.
What do you think? Cool or wasteful?
~Mavis
lorig says
Cool and wasteful. There are many things I grow for the beauty. I do not think that alone is wasteful. It is frivolous to throw food away however these are not being grown as food but as decoration so I am divided.
Carol says
Well, I get your point Mavis. But, we grow lots of plants for decoration only…..I would think the growers would want to put their fields to better use, though. It is sort of sad for the watermelons not to grow as they should. Please don’t ask for my opinion on Japan’s whaling season starting this week….you may have to block my rant….
Love to Lucy!
Carol
Peggy Stenglein says
I’m with you on this one Mavis. If you are going to devote space to plant a fruit or vegetable, someone or something (animal) should be able to consume it. With people going hungry all over the world, I think growing food to throw away is frivolous.
Cecily says
While I agree that there is too much food waste I don’t see this as any different than growing squash to decorate your front porch or jewel toned corn and mini gourds for a fall center piece. What about flowers? They use water and nutrients. This is merely another decorative plant albeit a pricey one.
Miriam says
There are plenty of things humans do for decoration only. There are many plants we grow not to eat, but to decorate with and technically every time we build a house, we have cut down plants for ‘decoration’ when we have other materials and when we craft, that is technically waste as well. Paints, yarn, and many other materials come from somewhere. In general, humans are wasteful.
People should try to waste less food (and other things on this earth) but if we didn’t waste at least some materials, we wouldn’t be able to live in our modern world as it currently exists.
Of all the bad things there are out there, square watermelon is low on my list. I just hope they compost it when they are done.
Jules says
Kind of odd, maybe. But the world runs on appearances it seems. So my question is, why not just make a larger box to grow it in so it will become ripe in time?
JS says
The most shocking aspect of this is that “regular ones” are 4 to 5 times cheaper than the $100 square watermelons. So, watermelons in Japan are $20 to $25?!
Kristina says
Meh, I guess I can’t get worked up about 200-300 square watermelons that are grown this way each year in Japan given the amount of not exactly perfect produce that gets left in the fields here in the US. That is something to get worked up about.
Renae says
I agree, I think it is sad a wasteful. Many, many things we purchase are wasteful, but it seems so silly to grow a watermelon for shape knowing that no one will eat it.
Rochelle says
Meh. How many pumpkins are carved up each Halloween for decoration? Christmas trees? Indian gourds?
Chad says
Cool that they could do it, but I wouldn’t buy it because it’s wasteful.
Colleen says
I think you’re being a little judgmental of other cultures.
I don’t have issues with this as waste. Waste to me says doing something for no purpose. However, there is a purpose to growing a water melon in a square in Japan. It might not have a purpose to YOU, but it does have a purpose to (some of) the people in Japan. The purpose for them is not to eat it, but rather give a gift that shows status. Similar to someone giving you a piece of jewelry in the US. Japan’s malnutrition rate is lower than the US malnutrition rate.
Just because someone throws out food, doesn’t mean that there is an easy (/any realistic) way to get that food to someone in need.
If all land is supposed to be used for growing only edible food. You would be mighty cold in the winter with no clothes and no heat.
To me, this is an interesting cultural quirk. Maybe a trip to Japan should be in your future.
Tanya says
Did you watch the video that pops up after about the heart shaped watermelons? THOSE are edible!
Kathryn Sanday says
I live in Japan and the square watermelons are a novelty. On the other hand, the heart shaped ones are delicious and look great. Watermelons generally cost about $3.50 for a cut quarter in the supermarket. Now is pear season and 2 cost about $5, peaches are grown where I live and cost about $4 for one perfect one, which is white. They cover the fruit with bags to stop suntan and insects damaging this edible gold. Last year my neighbour made $600,000 profit growing peaches but it is hard work and he is 65 years old.
sharon says
Why can they not be eaten?
molly says
oops, careful there. After revealing you bought a vacation home, on the opposite coast…careful about what you say is wasteful.
There are lots of people working hard to feed their families healthily, from the fruits of their labor…who for real, not as a hobby.
Carol says
I’m with you, Mavis. Ridiculous and wasteful! Now if the profit from selling them could go to feeding the hungry, I might soften my stance…
Lisa Millar says
To be honest…. if I could grow 5 non-edible plants and sell them at $100 each I wouldn’t even think carefully… I would just do it! Then the money would go back into my garden!
I have lived in Japan for a number of years since the early 90’s and this square watermelon has little to do with the food aspect and a lot to do with the culture of giving presents and status. I guess its like giving a very long lasting (expensive) bunch of flowers or potplant.
I have seen fancy boxed (edible) fruit, like grapes or rock melon selling in the department stores for well over $100… more than double that at times!
Generally fruit and vege’s in Japan cost a lot more than here in Aust. Its a space thing.
I don’t agree with the above comment that Mavis is being judgemental of other cultures. She was specifically being judgemental of food waste… thats her thing!!
Lisa Millar says
PS Actually I also thought “Growing” presents has to be an improvement on the countless factories churning out useless plastic souvenirs, polluting the environment both with production and the end product.
The watermelon idea seems more environmentally sound! Just a shame those ones aren’t edible as a bonus.
Preppy Pink Crocodile says
I totally agree it’s a waste but so are a lot of things we grow. Like Christmas trees. Don’t get me wrong, I think a square melon is dumb. Under no circumstances would I buy it. It’s just not that exciting to me. But I also think pear and cherry and apple trees bread so that they never fruit is also dumb. But my city is full of non fruiting trees. In fact it’s not even legal to plant trees that fruit in the front/sidewalk (do note that I live in an urban city- not a suburb). So…I think wasteful growing hits every community.
KK @ Preppy Pink Crocodile
nikki says
I see what you mean about the space maybe being better allocated to an edible crop, but the commenter who said making a natural biodegradable gift is not a bad thing is right. Plus, if we start trying to judge what is better grown than something else, I mean, chocolate is not as important as bananas in our diet, but I’m not going to suggest they replace the cacao trees! We grow gourds just for fall decoration, and dried inedible corn displays. And then there’s flowers and landscaped bushes. Plants for jot is not such a bad thing, the more I think about it.
nikki says
*joy
LoraC says
Wasteful? Coming from someone who just celebrated the purchase an “extra” home 2000+ miles away from their primary home? Which I think is great by the way, enjoy. If I was a person who took the notion of carbon footprint seriously I might be tempted to call you out, but I don’t buy into that climate change stuff. I think it might be wise though to back off a bit on the judgement.
Kerry C says
I don’t understand why they don’t make the boxes they grow in bigger. They said the watermelons need more time. So why not make them bigger and give them more time.