New banana is pesticide free, cold tolerant and has an edible peel

A new Japanese designer banana is entirely edible, peel and all.

Unlike the ubiquitous Cavendish banana, the Mongee (pronounced “mon-gay”), isn’t grown in tropical climes. D & T Farm in southern Japan uses a low-temperature technique to grow the special organic fruit, (which sells for $7 a piece), CNN reports.

The result is a new boutique banana: pesticide-free, cold resistant, and encased in a thin and supple edible peel.

According to Tokyo-based SoraNews24, the fruit has an “almost pineapple-like” flavour and is sweeter than a regular banana, with 24.8 grams of sugar compared to approximately 18 grams.

The peel’s soft lettuce-like texture is “bitter, but not inedible.”

Creator Setsuzo Tanaka worked with tropical fruit for four decades before inventing the Mongee, National Public Radio reports. His goal was to grow a “delicious banana with no pesticides.” Tanaka keeps the banana seedlings at a chilly -60 C and then replants them in a 27-C environment.

— GETTY IMAGES Step aside, old-school banana. You are being bested by a sweeter designer version, which can be eaten peel and all.