Friend saw a man selling what she thought were "baby" kiwis at a local farmers market. He said they were a cross between a kiwi and a pear. She said it tasted fine and had qualities of both fruits, but is this really possible?
I don't know for sure but here are some ideas.
The genus of the kiwi is not close to that of the pear and this would make natural hybridisation through cross pollination very difficult, although GE techniques can overcome some of those boundaries and there have been crosses between quite different plants before so it isn't altogether impossible.
Kiwifruit have been given common names involving "pear" in the past. So this might be some kiwi cultivar. There has apparently been quite some effort put into finding other species of the kiwifruit genus (actinidia) and crossing them to make new commercial crops. I am guessing this is the most likely explanation. One that has already hit the market is the golden kiwi that has a non furry skin, milder taste and yellow flesh. None of these involve your actual pear (pyrus).
David
thanks
Sounds like a winning combination! They should have called it a Piwi! Just done a little research into fruit hybrids and came across 'this.'
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