Anyone that’s ever cooked knows that chopping an onion is no pleasant experience. So much so that it will make you cry, and there’s really not anything you can do about it, apart from maybe putting on goggles that will blur your vision that can then pose a risk of chopping your fingers instead of the onion itself.

For this reason, farmers and scientists have been working together to find a solution to this problem that has lasted throughout history, and they claim to have finally created a tearless onion.

It’s named the Sunion and is the success of a cross-breeding program that has existed in Washington and Nevada farms since the 1980’s. Consumers initially were worried about a product that was going to be genetically modified, but this cry-free onion is all natural.

It’s apparently a mild-tasting, sweet onion that has no strong aftertaste. What’s really special though about this onion is it’s tearless feature while being chopped.

Normal onions when cut release a compound known as  lachrymatory-factor synthase. When this gets in reach of your eyes, your body creates tears in order to reduce the irritation.  This compound however increases over time, so the more you cry from an onion will be determined by how old the onion is.

Sunions do the opposite. The compound is reduced over time, and eventually will have no effect your eyes.  That’s what is claimed to happen at least, but some people who have already tried it have also confirmed it works.

So it’s true, tearless onions are real. The only issue right now is that they are only grown in Nevada and Washington and there is a very limited supply.  Hopefully they will become more available worldwide as they become more known.