A HK$168 strawberry spotted at CitySuper supermarket has prompted a fiery debate over “designer” fruit and excess packaging.
The Kotoka strawberry gift box includes a sticker which reads “Fresh By Air From Japan.”
Some Facebook commenters were as angry over the pricing as they were about the packaging.
“City super need public shaming… I don’t shop there anyway… mostly since prices are criminal and so is their packaging,” said one commenter. “Citysuper is ridiculously expensive!! Jeeez! HKD168 for ONE strawberry! Bloody hell!!” remarked another.
Some suggested that the over-priced strawberry must have special magical powers, whilst others questioned the carbon footprint of such imports – most of which are flown in from Japan.
Wong Yuen-Ming shared with HKFP more photos of fresh produce he spotted recently at local supermarkets, including TASTE. His image include a HK$1,488 watermelon, a HK$78 peach and an HK$888 bundle of grapes.
Wong also spotted a single heart-shaped strawberry retailing at HK$218.
A petition launched last month is currently calling on Hong Kong supermarkets to “stop the excessive and unnecessary use of plastic wrap and plastic containers for their produce.” Almost 7,500 people have signed it thus far.
HKFP has approached CitySuper for comment.
