Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Consumers looking for
tomatoes just like the ones they tasted on their last Mediterranean
holiday will love the new Marmonde tomato - available in
Sainsbury's stores between January and April 2009.
Exclusively produced by leading fruit and vegetable specialist The
Greenery, Marmonde tomatoes are similar to typical Mediterranean
varieties but have improved shelf life enabling them to be sold
further afield.
The Greenery has used a specialist growing method to concentrate
on quality rather than yield, meaning the product offers all the
taste and texture attributes of classic Mediterranean
varieties.
Marmonde tomatoes are traditionally used in tomato salads but can
also be used in hot dishes. They are sweeter than standard round
tomatoes, with a Brix value of around 7.5 per cent.
Richard Binks, technical manager of Greenery UK, said: "People go
on holiday and try new dishes featuring ingredients that perhaps
they haven't tried before. Marmonde offers shoppers the chance to
buy a very similar product to the one which they loved on
holiday.
"The Marmonde tomato has been benchmarked against some typical
Mediterranean varieties that are commonly grown in Southern Europe
but usually only sold to the local markets because of very short
shelf life.
"Our growers have the knowledge and experience to grow a fruit
that retains its excellent 'Mediterranean' flavour and has improved
shelf life, thus allowing the fruit to be sold in the UK.
"There is a real demand from consumers for fruit and vegetables
that are a little different from the norm and we are confident that
Marmonde will meet their tastes."
The Greenery is one of Europe's major producers and importers of
fresh fruit and vegetables with an average annual turnover of
approximately 2.5 billion euros.