Wholesum continues to innovate tomato line
Wholesum continues to innovate tomato line
Wholesum Family Farms, a leading grower of organic greenhouse tomatoes, is rolling out a new heirloom variety that pays homage to its French roots while offering consumers a superior eating experience.
The new Marmande variety, which will be marketed under the M’dame Merlot label, is an heirloom beefsteak tomato that traces its origin to France. Wholesum launched a small trial with Sprouts Farmers Market and said it is showing early success.
In fact, Wholesum Chief Operating Officer Theo Crisantes said on Nov. 13 that the company recently introduced the variety through a collaborative commercial launch with one of its retail partners and is excited to see its performance in the weeks and months ahead.
Crisantes said the Marmande is flat, ribbed heirloom with a high shoulder, and is very juicy with high flavor. It also has good shelf life, allowing for nationwide distribution.
“We always want to delight our consumers,” he said. “With our M’dame Merlot, we are able to align the [Marmande’s] French origin with a culinary approach. This appeals to the conscious epicurean that is looking for an outstanding sensory experience while consuming a responsible product.”
He said Wholesum is taking a measured approach with M’dame Merlot, not rushing production just to get them on the market.
Crisantes said Wholesum’s high-tech greenhouses in Amado enable the company to produce all its tomato varieties under optimal conditions, resulting in vibrant colors and superb flavor.
“Sunlight is crucial for our crops, and in our greenhouses we can regulate the amount of sun through technology and we do timely pruning of the leaves to ensure the tomatoes receive the proper amount of light,” he said.
Crisantes said Wholesum has been growing heirloom varieties for around five years and will be looking to increase production in the future due to their popularity with consumers.
In addition to the heirloom varieties, Wholesum produces three other crops — tomatoes-on-the-vine, beefsteaks and cocktail tomatoes — at its four six-acre greenhouses in Amado. All tomato varieties in Wholesum’s lineup are grown using organic practices and are Fair Trade certified.
Wholesum also has greenhouses in Mexico, which Crisantes said are twice the size of those in Amado. In Mexico, the company grows peppers and cucumbers, in addition to snacking tomatoes.
“We are always looking to keep innovating and bringing new items to market,” he said. “We do a lot of scouting and work with companies to come up with new ideas. Once we identify something that has promise, we conduct trials to see if its suitable for us in terms of flavor, size and color. Once everything checks out on those points, we then do market research to see if its commercially viable.”
The odds of identifying a winner are rather long, he admitted. “Last year, we trialed around 150 different varieties and only five advanced to the next stage.”
Jaramillo said once Wholesum identifies potentially viable varieties, it does sensory testing with a focus group made up of people who have experience with tomatoes as well as those that do not, to get a broad perspective.
“We ask them about flavor, aroma and mouth feel and then create a ‘likeability index’ to measure the overall experience,” she said. “We actually do this two or three times during a crop since flavor and color can change during the growing process.”
Jaramillo said another new variety underway is a cross between a cocktail tomato and an heirloom, which it has named, Reb’l Girl. She said this variety can grow with less water, a method known as dry farming, which yields an intense flavor.
Another cocktail variety, the Valentino, has been on the market for a while, said Jaramillo, but Wholesum is developing improved sustainable packaging that will still preserve quality and shelf life.
“We’re looking to move away from plastic clamshells as much as possible, but it is still suitable for some varieties due to product visibility needs and shipping concerns,” she said.
She noted that Wholesum offers a popular line of snacking tomatoes that include five different options:
Poppies — red cherry tomatoes-on-the-vine that are crisp and aromatic with high flavor.
Darlings — glossy and deep red grape tomatoes that are bite-sized and bursting with flavor.
Kaleidos — a medley of snacking tomatoes that are red, yellow, orange and brown, with a distinct flavor profile designed to please all palates.
Brites — two-toned cherry tomatoes-on-the-vine that are bright, crisp and have a pop of juicy flavor.
Lil’ Ones — bright and tasty tiny tomatoes the provide a flavor explosion in every bite.
