Green Bananas Are Prohibited... Popular as 'Attachment Plants' Among Office Workers [Beijing Diary]

The wordplay of the Chinese people is unparalleled. The culture of creating superstitions or trends by using homophones and enjoying them within groups has flourished on the continent for many years. This is also called the "harmony sound" (諧音) culture. The practice of Chinese people putting the character for fortune (福) upside down on their doors, or sticking lizard-shaped stickers on the rear bumpers of cars, also originated from this.

One recent wordplay that became quite a hot topic is the "Green Banana Ban." This story is not just a playful joke but has turned into a business item, bringing considerable income to someone.

Mr. Lin Won-hae, born in the 1990s, who started the Green Banana project inspired by the social anxiety of the youth. (Photo by Baidu)

Netizens shared the process of green bananas gradually ripening to yellow. (Photo source= Weibo)

Unripe green bananas, which taste astringent, are rarely distributed in the market. Recently, in China, this fruit has become a small potted plant, occupying the desks of office workers nationwide. Instead, a small card attached to the banana bunch reads: "Green Banana Ban (禁止蕉綠)." The price of these green bananas, which require the bothersome ripening process, is 69.9 yuan (about 13,290 won) for 5 kg, not much different from ripe yellow bananas.

The story behind green bananas becoming beloved potted plants for office workers is as follows. The Chinese pinyin for "green banana," "jiaol? (蕉綠)," sounds the same as "anxiety (焦慮)." Therefore, banning green bananas means banning worries, anxiety, and concerns. Watching the green bananas turn yellow during the ripening process and eating them one by one helps young employees relieve the nervousness and anxiety they feel at work. Some people even wrote down worries they wanted to forget on each banana with a pen. One netizen commented, "I see the transformation of bananas from green to yellow as the process of my life changing from a fresh university graduate to a seasoned office worker."

Lin Wenhai, born in the 1990s, who started this business after quitting his factory job, said in an interview that daily orders reach 10,000, and he has sold more than 3 million banana bunches so far, earning 2 million yuan per month. Local media introduced this by saying, "(Lin) realized that young people today, who feel immense pressure in their fast-paced work and life, urgently need a way to relieve their anxiety."

Lin’s success story seems to be recognized as a way for young people to relieve anxiety in another sense. In China, facing unprecedented unemployment (14.7% for ages 16?24 in May) and over 12 million university graduates every year, it serves as a lesson that with a good idea and execution, one can make a lot of money.

Recently, Chinese President Xi Jinping personally emphasized "high-quality full employment," stressing the need to balance job supply and demand. Although the healing effect of the banned green banana may not last long, the effort to look on the bright side of the situation is worth noting.