Although tomatoes are one of the most widely consumed vegetables, specialization is gaining more and more weight in the industry as consumers demand a more flavorful product in a segment that, for too long, has been immersed in a price and volume war.
"Saborum is a company from Almeria, part of the Ametller Origen Group, which created the Tip Top brand under which our tasty tomatoes are marketed. This project was born seeking excellence in tomatoes, moving away from long-life tomatoes and aiming to supply tomatoes with the right taste, aroma, and texture, harvested at their optimum point of ripeness," said Pere Meya, project manager of Saborum.
"Our tomatoes are the result of 7 years of R&D work, during which we have been testing more than 100 different varieties of tomatoes in trial fields and assessing the response of customers in our stores until we found the varieties we are currently working with."
"The first variety was the Ty12 tomato from Rijk Zwaan, which we grow exclusively, and which was followed by the rest of Saborum's tomatoes. It is a pink tomato with a very fleshy texture, aromatic and thin-skinned. It has achieved such success in our stores that it has become a leader in terms of sales," says Pere, "In the other chains we work with, such as Vegalsa in Galicia, Bon Preu in Catalonia, Uvesco, Valvi, Aldi, El Corte Inglés and Socomo, and of course Ametller Origen, it has achieved the same good results."
"We want to implement the tomato farm concept in retail in Europe"
The Tip Top pink tomato is available all year round. It is grown from September to May in Almeria and Granada and in high altitude areas of Barcelona, as well as in Portugal, during the rest of the year. A total of about 7 million kilos are produced per season, but Tip Top is much more than a brand, according to Pere.
This is an integral concept in the tomato segment. It includes the testing of varieties in the field to find the best tomatoes of each type, pre-commercial trials, and the development of a business line, which ensures value throughout the entire chain.
"Our goal is to create a commercial network of Tip Top tomatoes, but not only at the retail level. In Europe, we want to implement the "tomateca" (tomato library) concept. We will set up an online store in Spain so that consumers can buy directly, and we want to supply our tomatoes to fine dining establishments. We have already tested them in Michelin-starred restaurants, and they have been recognized as exceptional tomatoes."
"Moreover, we are already working on the other varieties that will be launched on the market under our own brand: a new ribbed tomato, a cherry fondant type with a very sweet flavor that melts in the mouth, and an umami tomato with a high level of kokumi and a very good post-harvest, which will allow it to compete directly with the best RAF in Europe, and which we will be presenting next October at Fruit Attraction," says Pere Meya.
