[Nyororin]

They raise them in greenhouses, and wrap the fruit in plastic and paper while they`re being grown, put soft padding beneath heavier ones, etc. Perfect examples are a rarity, which is why they`re so incredibly expensive. The imperfect ones can be found for 100th the price at local markets and pick-it-yourself establishments.

This is pretty big news right now, as the percentage of "perfect" fruit is around 3~5% of the crop - but it provides 95% of the profit for the growers. But with the economy suspicious at this point, no one wants to buy 800yen apples or 12000yen melons.... So the growers are starting to panic.