Northern Italy’s tomato set to conquer Europe: a blend of quality, sustainability, and innovation
Where do the tomatoes we find in German supermarkets come from?
Have you ever wondered where do the tomatoes on your frozen pizza come from? Or what journey that tube of tomato paste took before landing in your pot to add flavor and color to your ragù?
Well, there is a good chance that those tomatoes come from Italy, specifically from Northern Italy. This may be a surprise to many, since the cultivation of tomatoes is generally associated with the South of the country. In fact, the regions of Emilia-Romagna, Lombardy, Veneto, Piedmont and the autonomous province of Bolzano account for about 39,000 hectares of land dedicated to tomato cultivation, producing 2.8 million tons of tomatoes each year and representing 52% of Italy’s national production and 25% of Europe’s total.
These tomatoes are industrial ones, completely different from fresh ones. To be even more clear, these tomatoes are processed into final products like sauce, concentrate or tomato pulp and then distributed to international markets.
Thanks to the organization OI Pomodoro, which brings together all the players in the production chain, we had the opportunity to take a closer look at the processing and cultivation process. This coordination between over 2,000 growers and more than 20 processing companies ensures an efficient, high-quality production, which ultimately brings these products to the shelves of German supermarkets, ready to be enjoyed by customers across the country.
From field to industry in just a few kilometers
While doing our tour in September, we found ourselves in the final phase of tomato harvesting. The machines usually start to operate in the fields in mid-July, and they keep working in constant and frantic motion from field to industry, ensuring continuous supply. The distance they travel is usually about just a few kilometers, never exceeding 65km, in order to preserve the freshness of the product as much as possible and minimize environmental impact. This precise calculation is part of a broader approach: the supply chain of OI Pomodoro from Northern Italy was indeed the first to measure the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF), a methodology developed by the European Commission to assess and communicate the ecological impact of the entire production cycle.
Fair tomatoes taste better
When it comes to sustainability, OI Pomodoro is committed not only to environmental protection but also to social responsibility, conveying its value through clear communication supported by data on one hand, and by simple, accessible messages on the other. These messages are made available, for example, through the docuseries Truemato, a set of five short films available on their YouTube channel.
First things first, the supply chain has minimized the use of chemical agents and promotes organic farming (10%) and integrated farming (for the remaining 90%). In terms of transparency, the Producers’ Organizations (OP) are also developing a QR code system to be applied to each field, ensuring complete traceability from cultivation to processing and providing consumers with certainty about the origin of the final product. In the fields, measures have been implemented to enable the rational use of water, such as drip irrigation, which delivers water directly to the plants, and sensors that monitor soil moisture to assess the actual need for irrigation. Finally, there is a social sustainability aspect that is often less discussed, which has seen the replacement of manual labor with fully mechanized and technological harvesting in the fields. Within the OI, this sustainability is reflected in an equal and collaborative relationship between growers and industries, ensuring fairness and transparency throughout the entire supply chain.
Sustainable agriculture: challenges and goals
The TOMATO-SAUCE project (Sustainable Agriculture Understanding in Central Europe) launched by OI aims to promote the sustainability of European tomatoes, highlighting the high environmental standards in agricultural and industrial practices in Northern Italy. Europe, with Italy leading the way, is one of the world’s major producers of processing tomatoes and is also one of the most fair.
Today, sustainability is no longer just a trend; it is a choice that strongly depends on consumer willingness. According to recent data, 64.3% of Europeans consider sustainability a priority when deciding what to put on the table, and 60% want to know more about the supply chain of the products they purchase. With initiatives like the ones from OI Pomodoro, consumers now have the tools to make choices with awareness.
If you find yourself in front of a jar of tomato sauce on the shelves of our Lidl, Rewe or Edeka stores, take a little of your time and pay attention to the origin, the packaging, and any other certification. The next time you put a pizza in the oven or prepare a delicious ragù, you can savor not only the taste of tomato but also the attention and care from Northern Italy towards quality and sustainability.
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