Love apples?Wolf peach?No matter what you call it, whether it is eaten raw, cooked or juiced, tomatoes are one of the most popular agricultural products in the world.
Global production exceeds 180 million tons to meet the world’s demand for this fruit.Yes, from a botanical point of view, tomato is a fruit—especially the berries of nightshade native to South America—but most people and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) treat it as a vegetable .
Widely consumed Today, tomatoes are the second most commonly consumed vegetable in the United States after potatoes.
This is clearly shown in the amount of consumption of this traditionally most popular red round tomato (although today’s tomatoes come in many shapes, sizes and colors): the domestic per capita consumption of fresh tomatoes has increased from about 13 pounds in 1980 Increased to nearly 20 pounds.2020.
This increase may be the result of increased consumer awareness of healthy and nutritious foods (especially supported by millennials and Generation Z), the plethora of new varieties and colors, and the result of ample supply throughout the year.
Canadians and Mexicans also like tomatoes, ranking third in Canada, second only to lettuce and onions (dried and green), and next to green peppers and potatoes in Mexico.
Main planting areas According to data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, China is the largest tomato growing country, producing 35% of the world’s tomatoes, which may surprise some people.
California and Florida lead the United States in exploiting the value of tomato production, followed by Tennessee, Ohio and South Carolina.To commemorate the status of tomatoes as the main fresh produce crop in Tennessee, the state legislature adopted tomatoes as the official fruit in 2003.
Approximately 42% of tomatoes consumed in the United States are fresh market tomatoes.The balance of consumption comes from tomatoes processed into countless sauces, pastes, drinks and condiments.
When it comes to California production, more than 90% of the crops harvested each year are used for processing.The central valley of the state is the largest producing area.
The counties of Fresno, Yolo, Kings, Merced, and San Joaquin combined account for 74% of California’s total tonnage of processed tomatoes in 2020.
The severe drought and water shortage in California in the past few years have caused losses to tomato planting areas.The extreme heat of last summer forced growers to harvest early.
In June, the National Bureau of Agricultural Statistics of the United States Department of Agriculture reduced the estimated value of the planted area planned for processing in 2021 from 240,000 to 231,000.
According to the Florida Tomato Commission near Orlando in Maitland, Florida, the fruits of the Sunshine State in Florida account for almost all of the national fresh market. Tomatoes grown in the field from October to June account for all the fresh tomatoes produced in the country. Nearly half of it..
Most tomatoes grown in Florida are round, there is a high demand for catering services, and they are grown in the field.Usually, they are harvested green and treated with ethylene gas to make them mature.
The main growing areas include the southwestern part of the Sunshine State and the Tampa Bay area.In 2020, 25,000 mu will be planted and 24,000 mu will be harvested.
The crop is worth US$463 million-the highest in a decade-but because fresh tomatoes imported from Mexico were absorbed by the market, tomato production was the lowest at the time.
Elmer Mott is the vice president of Collier Tomato&Vegetable Distributors, Inc., a brokerage firm in Arcadia, Florida, BB#:126248, and has been in the tomato business for 45 years.He remembers that there are three times as many tomato packaging plants in Florida as it is now.
“In the 1980s and 1990s, there were 23 or 24 packaging plants; now there are only 8 or 9 packaging plants,” he said.Mott believes that this trend will continue until only a few are left.
Collier Tomato and Vegetables operates a variety of tomatoes, which are shipped to repackers in the retail and food service industries.This includes exports to other nearby countries: “We exported some to Puerto Rico, Canada and Trinidad and Tobago,” he said.
The company’s supply comes from Florida, unless the required size and color are not easily available.
As a traditionalist, Mott prefers tomatoes grown in the field; however, he pointed out, “Florida is sandwiched between rocks and hard places—Mexico continues to increase trade volume, and I don’t think there is any reason why it will decrease.”
This is an excerpt from Tomato Spotlight in the November/December 2021 issue of Produce Blueprints magazine.Click here to read the entire question.
Post time: Jan-04-2022