Page 28 - 0519

or new sensing technology, retailers, proces- sors, chefs, even food bloggers, and the absorption of these different perspectives is changing the dialogue and approach of cultivar development.
“I don’t think anyone today will be in the driver’s seat simply by picking a product or an input. You have to collaborate,” empha- sizes Burchett.
Burchett notes Bayer’s vegetable businesses are putting more emphasis on enhanced flavor, visual appeal and variety than in the past, but this can often be at the expense of yield. The Delisher cherry plum tomato under the group’s De Ruiter brand is a prime example he claims is “hitting home runs” for consumers.
“There are definitely products that are going to be better at producing the volumes, but this one you could say is almost an exclu- sive hit for the consumer focused on flavor,” he says.
In a similar vein, Bejo Seeds Inc. of Oceano, CA, is marketing a tomato variety that would not have passed muster before.
“Tasti-Lee is a unique vine-ripe tomato that has tremendous eating qualities,” says Jeff Trickett, the company’s sales
and marketing director. “It
would never have been
selected by the tomato
industry as a stand-
alone product in the old
commercial environ-
ment because it does
not produce the type
of yield they want in
their typical historical
commercial setting.
28 / MAY 2019 / PRODUCE BUSINESS
“But what it does have is enormous consumer end-user values like color, texture and flavor, and because of that the program is able to attain a higher value at retail, and therefore you cancel out the yield disadvan- tage.”
FINDING THE RIGHT BALANCE
As new varieties come through the pipe- line, even though lead times are long the life cycles of new cultivars are getting shorter. Companies such as Top Seeds International of Moshav Sharona, Israel, overcome this challenge with brands encompassing a range of varieties with specific attributes.
“Our aim is to develop products that give a special experience, and the most typical example of that is the brand Tomachoc,” says Top Seeds’ chief executive, Gianni Bernar- dotto. “The unifying factor of that brand is really the shocking chocolate color; it’s very dark green, which during the ripening turns a deep red.”
chocolate,” he says, adding other key char- acteristics include taste and high lycopene content, with types of tomatoes varying from oval-shaped to cocktail to cherry.”
Bernardotto points to a global change in tomato preferences that is reflected in his native Italy, where in Sicily cherry toma- toes were once a “curiosity” but have since become mainstream.
However, not all niche cultivars introduced will end up so widespread.
“The sensitivity of the consumer has increased dramatically in the past 20 or 25 years, and I don’t think it’s the end,” says Bernardotto. “The role of a seed company like ours is to develop varieties that are bringing something different and new, which will probably not always be the mainstream.”
Seminis is also taking the approach with strategic partners of branding for a range of varieties, with a rollout this year of yellow-skin cantaloupes marketed under the “Crave” brand.
“Traditionally cantaloupes don’t get the best reputation for tasting good, but these are terrific-tasting cantaloupes, which we are not used to, but they also have the grower qualities that we’re looking for such as shelf life, field holding and ship-ability,” says Bayer Group’s
Burchett.
“There’s a nice
ThebrandedTomachocfrom Top Seeds International is so named due to its choco- late color.
“It’s very special
and reminds us of
ABOVE PHOTO COURTESY OF SEMINIS PHOTO BELOW COURTESY OF TOP SEEDS
Seminis is putting more emphasis on flavor, visual appeal and variety, and the Delisher cherry plum tomato is a prime example.