Premium black watermelon auctioned for record Y650,000

"and possibly the world"..no, genius, DEFINITELY the world...which people besides the japanese are stupid enough to waste that kind of money on a melon ?

I'm thinking a Rolling Stones inspired scam is on the books here.

Other Densuke watermelons won’t cost quite as much. Most will retail at >department stores and supermarkets for a more modest 20,000 yen to >30,000 yen, Ohira said.

...modest 20,000 yen to 30,000 yen????

"it has a black skin".....who eats the skin!

Something is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it.

He should set up an online vote to decide what happens to the melon.

1) Brand it with an astrisk and send it to Prime Minister Fukuda 2) Drop it from the top of Landmark Tower 3) Suika-wari on prime-time TV featuring girls in bikinis

This is all about novelty. Happens quite a bit in Japan in various forms.

"it has unparalleled taste"

I certainly hope so!

Altria - I like your #3 idea.

"And what makes a watermelon worth so much? Its unusual black skin, Ohira said. Inside, the watermelon is crisp and hard. And, he says, it has unparalleled taste."

Fine, I'll take a slightly tasty watermelon 4 times the size and costing only $3 back home. Better yet, I'll use the same amount of money this loser paid and buy enough for 200,000 people (and their families). Nah, I won't... but you catch my drift. They should put this article directly under the 'countries vow to battle rising food costs' article.

With 650,000 yen as the price,after watching it to your heart centent,you have to eat this suika completely clean!After tasting all the flesh,you should collect all the seeds(if any),and all the skin ,put into a mixer and make a milk shake .Drink them all not waste a drop...And do all that with an ear to ear smile.

and people complain about gas prices... haha black watermelon

a fool and his money......

There are hundreds of different types of watermelons but I never heard of or saw a "Black Watermelon." Just maybe it was sold for so much for the seeds - so they could offer yet another strain.

note to self: grow plain melons for 19 cents and sell them to japanese imbeciles for 300 dollars

Only the Japanese would fork out that kind of money for a "Watermelon". I guarantee the "Watermelon" we buy in Yakima, Washington taste as good if not better.

I can remember my wifes cousin (from Japan) buying a "hand bag" for $25,000???? at Holt Renfrew. We thought that was nuts, but paying that kind of money for a Watermelon or Cantaloupe is completely NUTS!

And now we're sure the most stupid people still exist...

purchased by a marine products dealer who said he wanted to support local agriculture.

Apparently more of a donation than simply for the watermelon.

Something is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it.

very true.. money doesnt doesnt by intelligence....