A viewer of TVNZ1's Seven Sharp is upset Trade Me has suspended his auction of seeds for blue strawberries.
Waen Manson, a seed grower and seller, emailed the programme, saying he listed exotic fruit and vegetable seeds for sale on Trade Me, including blue strawberries, purple tomatoes, purple cauliflowers.
"After two days I received an email from Trade Me informing me that, 'we have removed your auction due to it being simply not real'," he wrote.
Visited by Seven Sharp at Foxton, Mr Manson said, "Purple tomatoes do exist, as do blue strawberries."
He said he can't grow any more blue strawberries until summer, but showed seed packets, though none with the berries.
He said he got the seeds from an acquaintance in the South Island, who allegedly got them from Asia.
“We were quite concerned the seeds will not produce blue strawberries
Trade Me says it pulled Mr Manson's listing because of a lack of evidence of blue strawberries.
"We really want our Trade Me members to have a great buying experience, want their goods to turn up and we want them to do what they say they will do," said James Ryan of Trade Me.
"And in this case we were quite concerned the seeds will not produce blue strawberries and we removed them on that basis."
Dr Andy Allan of Plant and Food Research said he knows from his science that blue strawberries are pretty unlikely.
"In strawberries and apples and pears and peaches, they all belong to this large family that can make anticinons which can make reds and oranges. But in that family there's no gene that creates delphinonon, which is blue," Dr Allan said.
Mr Manson stopped answering Seven Sharp's calls and texted to pull out of the story, saying: "Blue strawberries do exist, I've been growing them for several years. However, I do not wish to be placed in a defensive position over such a trivial matter."
The Ministry for Primary Industries started an investigation, contacting Mr Manson, who now says he has destroyed the seeds.
MPI is now following the supply chain to resolve the mystery of the blue strawberry once and for all.
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