Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
which can result in an immense improvement in flavor. The heirloom boom also further
blurred the line between farmers' markets and supermarkets, as many growers supplied
both. Today, during the peak summer months, it's not uncommon to find heirloom toma-
toes with the name of your favorite farmers' market grower both in specialty markets and
at supermarkets clear across the country.
Although it is good to see these old varieties finding new popularity, many hard-core
tomato fans question whether something vital is being lost in the translation. Is an old
tomato variety grown, picked and packed by modern commercial standards really worth
celebrating? Frequently, the answer is no. Tomatoes are grown, not manufactured. They
are not Fords (or even Cadillacs), and there is more to good quality than a brand name, no
matter if it is Brandywine or Radiator Charlie's Mortgage Lifter. To make the long journey
to market, in many cases these heirlooms were being picked at the vine-ripe stage or even
earlier. Too often these were heirloom tomatoes in name only.
The next great stage in tomato evolution delivered much better flavor on a consistent
basis. Called grapes, or miniatures, these tiny tomatoes, about the size of the tip of your
little finger, are amazingly sweet. Best of all for the growers, they have a thick skin that
not only pops when you bite into them but also protects them well enough that they can be
harvested at nearly full ripe ness. Although they resemble the little cherry tomatoes that
have been with us forever, these new tomatoes are something different.
The first grape tomatoes - which are a little smaller than cherry tomatoes and more ob-
long than round - began hitting store shelves on the East Coast in 1997. One of the truly
radical things about these miniature tomatoes was that, compared to heirlooms, they fol-
lowed the reverse path to popularity, starting out as a commercial product and then filter-
ing down to small farmers and gardeners. Miniatures were introduced by a commercial
grower in Florida named Andrew Chu, who had heard about them from a friend in Taiwan.
He ordered the seeds from the Known-You Seed Company there and first planted them in
1996. In 1997 he began packaging the tomatoes in easily recognizable, clear plastic clam-
shell boxes and distributing them to supermarkets on the East Coast. When other growers
tasted these tomatoes, they jumped on the bandwagon. When Chu tried to trademark the
name "grape tomato" in 1998 to protect his market share, a series of legal battles ensued,
which were eventually settled out of court.
All the while, the tomatoes were gaining in popularity. Between 1999 and 2003 the
volume of grape and cherry tomatoes sold increased more than 300 percent, and their price
- already higher than those of standard tomatoes - increased more than 400 percent over
