Heart shaped strawberries prove a popular Valentine’s Day choice
A farm in Tasmania’s north has begun producing heart shaped strawberries that are in heavy demand ahead of Valentine’s Day.
Josh Engwerda, a 22 year-old engineering graduate from Melbourne, forged the idea while gardening at home, with his inspiration coming from square shaped watermelons found at prohibitive prices in Japan.
“I’d seen square-shaped watermelons in Japan and then I was gardening with my strawberries and something just clicked,” he said, according to ABC Online. “By now I’ve done about 32 versions on the computer which seven of those got made into actual moulds.
“The thing about it is it’s much more difficult than you think because strawberries obviously don’t grow naturally in heart shapes so you learn through trial and error.”
After failing to convince a couple of farmers in Victoria about the idea, Mr Engwerda found a partner in Tasmanian strawberry grower, David Warren.
The product doesn’t come cheap, however, with one strawberry costing $2-$2.50 – a price at which you may normally be able to get a whole punnet.
