Meet the seedless avocado, and you can eat the skin too

British retailer Marks & Spencer is selling a new stoneless avocado that also boasts edible skin. PHOTO: INSTAGRAM/@MARKSANDSPENCER

LONDON - Just when you thought the avocado could not get anymore hipster and on trend, meet the stoneless avocado.

Yes, no more wrestling with the avocado pit. This new variation on the fruit is a smaller version called the cocktail avocado. Measuring about 5cms to 8cms, this mini-version also boasts edible skin.

This magical fruit is being sold by British retailer Marks & Spencer in 149 outlets around the United Kingdom.

According to a report in The Guardian newspaper, the fruit is stoneless because it is the result of an unpollinated blossom, which then grows into a seedless fruit which is also smaller. The fruit is cultivated in Spain and available only in December.

M&S agronomist Charlotte Curtis has been quoted in various media as saying that the company has got only a limited amount of the fruit for the season.

Of course given the limited supply, this varietal is pricier - £2 ($3.60) per pack - compared to regular pitted avocados which cost between 85p per fruit and £1.50 for a pack of two from other British supermarkets.

But the price might be worth it to avoid knife injuries. Recent media reports have talked about the rise in "guac hand" injuries as more people have ended up at the emergency rooms at hospitals with stab/slash wounds after trying to cut open an avocado.

Although M&S has gone viral with this latest offering, it is not the first retailer to sell seedless avocados. The Sun newspaper reported that British supermarket chain Sainsbury had sold this item as far back as 2005.

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