The pundits have been tipping papaya to be the next fruit to make the trip from exotic to mainstream for a few years now.

Maybe it already has if the range of colours and sizes in Tesco is anything to go by. What caught my eye was fruit labelled Giant Formosa at £2.99 each and weighing around 3lb 8oz. These do not come from the island of the same name off the Chinese mainland, but from Brazil. And, for the purists, the variety name is Calimosa. Rubbing shoulders were much smaller fruit from the same source clearly labelled “New Improved” at £1.38 because they are tree-ripened longer and delivered fresher. But are they ready to eat, or should they be ripened at home?

I was faced with a similar quandary at Sainsbury’s which is offering four netted mini Hass avocados from South Africa labelled “Ripen at Home” for £1.49. No problems here, and clear instructions on the pack on how to prepare the fruit too.

Ready-to-eat fruit has been a good way of adding value and satisfaction but is now commonplace in all multiples. So does that mean that everything else that finds its way in the consumer’s fruit bowl or vegetable tray falls into the commodity bracket?

Something that I do applaud, again at Tesco, is the retailer’s use of informative stickers on the edges of the cartons which display the more unusual tropical and sub-tropical lines.

I spotted rambutans, passionfruit, starfruit, physalis and pomegranates getting the treatment, and not forgetting that Star Trek celebrity - dragonfruit. Its purple and cerise coloured skin, plus its shape like a sort of kohlrabi make it unmissable, but at Tesco it is described as “white fleshed”, which at least gives an indication of what is inside.

Meanwhile, every effort continues to be made to enhance the image of the basic lines. Rooster potatoes have already proved their value, and now I note that master chef Michel Roux is giving his tips on some more unusual fillings on a traypack of bakers priced at £1.19.

The English asparagus season is still going strong and Marks & Spencer appears to have turned back the clock with its 250g bunches priced at £1.99 and simply tied with string and a label. The other side of the coin was on sale at Somerfield where the contents of Union Jack branded trays reduced from £1.99 to £1.49 define the product as “luxury”.

And finally I am glad to see that the term “new season” is appearing more and more. In this case it is on New Zealand Sonya apples which are making headway in the UK.

All too often media and consumers still fall into the trap of referring to imported fruit as out of season, when in fact it is exactly the opposite.

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