For Antonio Luis Martínez, head of Zeraim Ibérica, the reason for the commercial success of the Caniles is based on collaboration. "We are dealing with the first tomato variety developed from scratch, resulting from the collaboration between producers and a seed company. What at first looked like a pear tomato with good qualities for export has been changing as a result of this collaboration with producers, who have gradually improved the crop management and, from 2013, saw the chance of gaining market share in other niches thanks to the good taste, colour, consistency and the particular shape of the Caniles."
That was the turning point for the Caniles, which helped create a powerful brand image for the variety, with marketing tools focusing on the key points that help differentiate it: that it is a long-life pear tomato, but with a very good flavour and red colour, and that it has a unique heart shape that makes it very appealing to consumers. As stressed by Rafael Salinas, product manager for Zeraim Iberica, its long life, taste and appearance are not the only highlights. "The Caniles is a tomato that is appreciated by consumers, but which producers are also fond of, as it has an excellent fruit setting with cold and heat, a very hardy plant that gives no problems throughout the cycle and a high productivity, without any losses when harvesting and putting it on the market, so it is a very profitable choice for the entire food chain."
All these qualities for the producer and the consumer explain the exponential growth in the production of the Caniles in recent years, and the clear challenge for the future is to maintain this level of growth while gaining more market share. For this there is only one formula, as stated by David Bodas, responsible for relations with the food chain at Syngenta. "Most consumers are looking for the features that the Caniles offers, i.e., quality, taste and durability, but to win more consumers over, it is necessary to offer them new presentations and tools to help them feel unique when they buy a tomato variety and prepare it at home."
So, to respond to this constantly evolving market, Zeraim Ibérica is working on two clear lines: developing new marketing tools for producers and investing in R+D+i to launch new varieties of the Caniles family. In this regard, the show cooking that took place at the event featured three prestigious chefs, who prepared various dishes included in the Caniles cookbook. In the gardens of the magnificent Hacienda Canales, where the event took place, attendees had the chance to tour the three cooking stations, where they were able to observe the preparation of different recipes and check the excellent culinary qualities of this variety.
The second line of work is more complex and involves years of research and development of new varieties based on the attributes of the Caniles. Pilar Checa, tomato improver and member of the multidisciplinary team of Syngenta in Almeria, gave us high expectations. "We are developing variations of the Caniles in new colours (brown, yellow, etc.) and with new flavours (more acidic, sweeter, etc.) which may help give a new push to the variety and to its differentiated marketing, with slow-packs mixing the original Caniles with these variations to make the product more attractive for consumers around the world." Everything points to the Caniles having a long commercial life ahead.
Zeraim Ibérica is a subsidiary of Zeraim Gedera, which was founded in July 1997. From that time until now, its main goal has been to get products to the Spanish market able to meet the expectations of both producers (profitability) and consumers (quality).
