2026-03-04 15:06:56

Japanese researchers have developed a special variety of onion that doesn’t make your eyes water.

The tear-free vegetable, called the Smile Ball, is grown on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido and is quickly gaining popularity. Around 180 tonnes of the onions are expected to be sold this year.

Unlike regular onions, the Smile Ball has been bred to remove the chemical reaction responsible for watery eyes – while still keeping the same taste and nutritional value.

Noriya Masamura, from House Foods Group, which has spent two decades researching non-pungent onions, believes the vegetable could even become a star ingredient in its own right.

He said: “Roughly chop them into pieces about five to seven millimetres thick, toss with a little salt, dried herbs and olive oil, and you’ll taste their sweetness and they’ll pair perfectly with white wine.”

Normally, cutting onions releases enzymes that create a gas which reacts with moisture in the eyes to form a mild sulphuric acid. The irritation triggers tears as the body tries to flush the chemical away.

For years, cooks have tried everything from freezing onions to chopping them underwater or even holding bread in their mouths in an attempt to stop the tears.

But scientists discovered the real culprit in 2002.

A Japanese research team led by Dr Shinsuke Imai identified the enzyme responsible for the reaction – called lachrymatory-factor synthase.

By breeding onions that suppress the enzyme, researchers created a vegetable that behaves like a normal onion but doesn’t produce the tear-inducing gas.

The unusual breakthrough even earned Dr Imai an Ig Nobel Prize in 2013 – an award celebrating scientific discoveries that first make people laugh and then make them think.

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