This Giant Strawberry Just Smashed the Record for 'World's Heaviest'

Some produce inevitably becomes more impressive the larger it gets. The simple fact that pumpkins can be grown large enough to smash a car is awe-inspiring (if not also wasteful). However, other record-setting fruit may feel a bit like an oxymoron: How big can the World's Largest Strawberry really get? Turns out, pretty big!

This month, Israeli farmer Ariel Chahi had one of his strawberries certified as "the world's heaviest" by Guinness World Records. The official weight — 10.19 ounces or 289 grams — may be hard to visualize, but the oddly-shaped berry certainly looks impressive: It's 7 inches long and has a massive circumference over 13 inches. To provide some perspective to its weight, Guinness World Records says the strawberry weighed over 3 ounces more than an iPhone XR.

The strawberry is of the Ilan variety, which was bred by Israeli researcher Nir Dai and is known for its large size. But even Dai explained that getting one this large requires special conditions. "During this strawberry season in late January and early February it was particularly cold," Dai, who was also at the official record-breaking weigh-in, told Guinness World Records. "The strawberry developed slowly for more than 45 days from flowering which caused its large size at full ripening stage."

He added, "Ilan cultivar has many large and unusual fruits, but it is the largest strawberry I have ever seen."

As for Chachi, even though Mother Nature did a lot of the work, he was still ecstatic about locking in the official record. "When we heard, it was an amazing feeling. I jumped in the car, laughed and sang," he said according to CNN. "We've been waiting for this for a long time."

Chachi's strawberry topped the previous record holder, an 8.82-ounce berry of the Japanese variety Amaou that was weighed in Fukuoka, Japan in January 2015.