MOSCOW, RUSSIA: A balmy Russian region famed for its lip-smacking watermelons on Friday (August 6th) introduced a hologram copyright label for the fruit to guard against "fakes."

"The hologram will be stuck on each watermelon sent outside the region and will confirm that the watermelons really have been grown in Astrakhan," the regional administration said in a statement.

The label will carry a picture of a watermelon and the crest of Astrakhan, which depicts a jewel-encrusted crown and an oriental sword, symbolising the region's proud history as an independent medieval kingdom.

"The hologram label... was developed to defend Astrakhan's watermelons from fakes," the statement said, referring to watermelons grown in other regions that are passed off as the Astrakhan fruit.

Watermelons are popular in Russia during the summer months, and vendors standing by piles of the fruit on city streets and country roads are a common sight.