Asda bans under-25s from buying kiwis to protect Harry Styles

The former One Direction member has a song called 'Kiwi'

The former One Direction singer said there was a kiwi on stage at his London show (AFP/Getty Images)

Asda banned under-25s from buying kiwifruit at a Manchester store on Thursday, saying that the move was designed to protect singer Harry Styles at his gig at the city’s 02 arena.

The ban at the retailer's Hulme superstore came after the former One Direction member was pelted with kiwifruit while performing his song ‘Kiwi’ at the London's Eventim Apollo on Tuesday night.

“We know our customers love Harry Styles and we feel it’s our duty to protect a fellow Mancunian from any ‘bad kiwis’ amongst us,” said an Asda spokesperson. “We’d hate to see a repeat of the mishap this evening, so to avoid any slippery situations, we feel this is a necessary measure.”

The supermarket said it issued a warning to its staff on Thursday morning to make sure they were aware of a sensitive situation. The retailer instructed them to ask for identification from any “kiwi-wielding” customers they suspected may be under 25.

Mr Styles, who was performing his debut solo album, reportedly told the crowd at his London gig: “You may have seen me fall earlier during this song ... it appeared to be a kiwi.

“That was the culprit, some green seedy mush. Look, there’s another, This could end up being a problem.”

This isn’t the first time music fans have prompted a fruit ban. At this year’s Reading and Leeds festival the organisers banned pineapples from the main arena. This was due to the band, Glass Animals’ song ‘Pork Soda’. The lyrics of that song include the line “pineapple in my head”.

A Reading and Leeds spokesperson told the BBC at the time: "Organisers were a little concerned about hundreds of pineapples turning up on site so decided to ask fans not to bring them along.”