Society

Price of Hokkaido melons at season's first auction drops sharply

May 26 (Japan Times) - A pair of melons grown in the Hokkaido city of Yubari sold for Â¥120,000 ($1,100) in the season's first auction on Monday, 2.4 percent of the price at last year's auction.

Prices for the two premium cantaloupes at the wholesale market have generally gone over above Â¥1 million in recent years, with the all-time high of Â¥5 million paid last year and Â¥3.2 million in 2018.

"The result (this year) mirrors the situation of the novel coronavirus pandemic," said an official at the wholesale market.

The successful bidder, a fruit and vegetable wholesaler based in Kushiro, Hokkaido, said it opted to bid in the auction this year to show its gratitude and support for local farmers. It will display the melons at a shopping center in Sapporo on Monday and start selling them Tuesday.

Do Bears Prefer Acorns or Berries?

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Copper Thieves Target Japanese Shrines

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1200-Year-Old Temple on Miyajima Reduced to Ashes

Flames broke out on the morning of May 20th on Miyajima Island in Hiroshima Prefecture, home to one of Japan's World Heritage sites, destroying Reikado Hall near the summit of Mount Misen.

From Bento Boxes to Garbage Bags, Rising Costs Hitting Daily Life Across Japan

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Tochigi Robbery-Murder Suspect’s Wife Posted Dance Videos on Social Media

A 25-year-old woman arrested as a suspected ringleader in a robbery-murder case in Tochigi Prefecture once posted cheerful dance videos on social media and was remembered by those who knew her as an energetic and outgoing young woman.

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