A one-in-a-million apple that's half red and half yellow has become a local celebrity at the Sunshine Corner Market in Christchurch, New Zealand, after it came in a random delivery last month.
The store's owner, Heather, told the New Zealand Herald,
We've been in the game a long time, never seen one like it.
And no, that's not AI, that's actually a perfectly halved red and yellow apple known as a chimera apple. Chimera apples are caused by rare gene mutations that cause one apple to form from two different genetic backgrounds, resulting in a really cool half-and-half variety.
It's also not genetically engineered, but a naturally occurring mutation, even though it does look pretty unnatural.
The store owner said that the apple has created quite a stir in their community, with people stopping by just to catch a glimpse of the rare fruit. Some people have even asked to rub the apple for luck.
She went on to tell the New Zealand Herald,
People have gone home, told their other half, and they haven't believed them, so they've come back with them. Lots of people are really excited and have taken photos of it -- it's just captured people's imagination.
The apple is approaching the end of its shelf life, and the store hasn't yet decided if they want to preserve the fruit to keep it on display or cut it open to look inside.
I vote to cut it up and sell it by the slice.
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