happy baby pears

Terror has a new name, and it is baby pears.

We’ve all seen pictures online of dogs that look like their owners, clouds in the shape of giant dragons and burnt toast that some people swear contains an effigy of Jesus or the virgin Mary, but never before have we witnessed pears intentionally produced to look like sleeping human babies.

Photographed at a supermarket in Beijing, China, these creepy pears became the main topic of conversation for thousands in Japan this past weekend, with many aghast at both the shape of the fruit itself and fact that someone would go to the trouble of creating such things, not to mention how, nay, why anyone would want to take a bite out of something that resembles a human foetus.

Retailing in Chinese as “happy/joyful doll pears”, the fruit is believed to be shaped during its initial stages of growth using special molds. From then, the fruit continues to expand with the same proportions until it reaches maturation as a fully-grown baby… pear… monster thing.

As you might expect, Japanese netizens had plenty to say on glimpsing images of the unnatural fruit:

- Creeeeeepy!

- “Joyous?” Really!?

- How on earth do you go about peeling them!?

- I really would never want to eat one of those.

- LOL Who on earth thought this up?

- Wow. Farming has really come a long way…

Let’s take a closer look at the fruit of the devil’s workshop, shall we?

▼ Their eyes are closed now, but just wait until you’re asleep…

happy baby pears

▼ The one on the right looks more like a pig than a person.

happy baby pears pack

▼ And here they are still growing!

happy baby pears growing

▼ Other, less creepy yet equally worrying, versions…

happy baby pears growing 3 happy baby pears growing 2

They give brand new meaning to the phrase “don’t play with your food”, don’t they?
[ Read in Japanese ]