What’s more appealing than a beautiful array of island fruits? Watching people messily peel, de-seed, and devour their sticky flesh on camera. Exotic fruits are now a growing subsection on Instagram and Tiktok, with thousands of clips and pictures shared under #exoticfruit. 

The videos typically start out the same; a lumpy object–sometimes scaly green, sometimes magenta–is shown to the camera. Then either a hand or a machete is brought into the frame to cut open the curious-looking thing. Sure, a knife offers a clean cut and a storybook cross-section, but viewers are after substance. An aggressive peel-apart that leaves fibers and juices dribbling out is a sure mess, but for the audience, there’s no greater satisfaction. And for the exotic fruit companies, there’s no better way to funnel customers in.

One reason for the enticement is the advertised “rarity” of the fruits. Click-bait titles paired with an intriguing thumbnail is a surefire recipe for more follows. Captions asking, “What do you call this fruit in your language?” also encourage more engagement from fans. Fruit content likens to that of mukbang (indulgent onscreen eating) or unboxing videos. But the sheer strangeness of watching someone eat a camoita or soursop is perhaps the best of both worlds. 

@miamifruit and @fruithuntersco are two accounts on Instagram that have cultivated a large following of tens or even hundreds of thousands of followers. Miami Fruit is a company that specializes in delivering its exotic fruits throughout the U.S. and Canada. Perhaps the majority of their fanbase comes not to purchase fruit, but to marvel at the dazzling eye candy that adorns their page. Miami Fruit offers promotional deals for customers who get their product pictures featured, which has been a successful incentive for getting free content. In one customer repost, a wooden saucer sits atop a patterned rug. Inside are tropical fruits galore: a cacao bean, pineapple, dragon fruits, limes, guavas, passion fruit, and annonas. 

While Miami Fruit keeps their feed composed and orderly, Fruit Hunters Co. opts for a more gritty “farm-life” approach to their social media. One of their most popular videos shows a bearded man plucking sprouted coconuts (a rare delicacy) from the earth. He splits the husk with two shovels before cracking the giant seed open against the pavement. As the two shells are peeled back, a fluffy interior that doesn’t seem possible is revealed. The guy reaches in, with his bare and dirt-rubbed hands, and puts a hefty sample into his mouth. The entire video runs less than 30-seconds, yet there is something mesmerizing, addicting even, about it. 

Many of the fruits that go viral on social media are ones that are rarely sold or even seen in most US grocery stores. When these fruits get their moments of fame, people are often shocked that they hadn’t heard of them sooner. The truth is, many cultures have been cultivating these fruits for centuries. These go to include the mangosteen, a berry-looking fruit that has pearly, segmented flesh. Or the massive thorned durian, an infamous fruit that is sometimes described as part onion and part vanilla custard. Both have roots in Southeast Asian culture but have only recently been brought to the attention of westerners.

“Durian is a fruit that either you love it or you hate it,” said sophomore Jacob Lee. “I tried durian first as a flavor in a dessert back when I was six, and to me, I loved it because it’s so custardy and sweet.

Though he’s happy that more Americans are learning about durian, he’s also concerned that doing so will strip away its cultural value.

“I’m glad that the fruits of different cultures are being exposed to Western culture. However, there’s a difference between learning and enjoying someone’s culture and not gentrifying it and putting your own label to it as it takes away from the actual culture of where it’s from and the people,” he said.

Also, when buying fruit from long distances, it’s important to note the unsustainability that goes into the shipping. Receiving a box of “farm fresh” produce doesn’t sound all that bad until you take into account that the box crossed state lines and traveled miles before it ended up at your doorstep. Repeated long-distance deliveries produce unnecessary carbon emissions. Definitely not the most sustainable way to acquire tropical fruit in the long run.

Of course, with such irresistible feeds, it can be hard to resist the temptation to order exotic fruits. Several of these sites sell seeds or plants that can be grown at home, a much more environmentally friendly alternative if you want to keep munching on papayas or tamarinds year-round. Still, the compulsory urge to binge on videos of others feasting on fruits is valid. 

Photo Courtesy of WIKIMEDIA COMMONS