“Tomatoland” is at its most potent and scathing in its portrayal of South Florida’s tomato growers and their tactics over the past half-century. It’s infuriating to read of their lack of regard for the taste of their product. Historically, when a farmer has learned to grow a tasty variety, that farmer has actually been scorned and prevented from shipping it
New York Times
How Industrial Farming ‘Destroyed’ The Tasty Tomato
If you bite into a tomato between the months of October and June, chances are that tomato came from Florida. The Sunshine State accounts for one-third of all fresh tomatoes produced in the United States — and virtually all of the tomatoes raised during the fall and winter seasons.
But the tomatoes grown in Florida differ dramatically from the red garden varieties you might grow in your backyard. They’re bred to be perfectly formed — so that they can make their way across the U.S. and onto your dinner table without cracking or breaking.
“For the last 50 or more years, tomato breeders have concentrated essentially on one thing and that is yield — they want plants that yield as many or as much as possible,” writer Barry Estabrook tells Fresh Air‘s Terry Gross. “They also want those fruits to be able to stand up to being harvested, packed, artificially turned orange [with ethylene gas] and then shipped away and still be holding together in the supermarket a week or 10 days later. Read more
Other
The New York Times: That Perfect Florida Tomato, Cultivated for Bland Uniformity
The Atlantic: Barry Estabrook’s ‘Tomatoland’
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About the author:
Barry Estabrook was a contributing editor at Gourmet magazine. His work has also appeared in the New York Times “Dining” section and the New York Times Magazine, Men’s Health, Saveur, Gastronomica, TheAtlantic.com and many other national magazines. He has been anthologized in The Best American Food Writing 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010. His James-Beard-Award Winning website is www.politicsoftheplate.com.
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