"New cherry tomatoes meet the challenges facing food retailing"

"The current crisis has greatly impacted how often consumers visit food retails but also how they shop there. Against this background food retailers must adapt their offer to control supply and avoid food waste. A real challenge for the fruit and vegetables section. A better range of varieties will help foster what’s on offer and increase the attractiveness of the section." That is said by Manuel Ferrer, food chain specialist with HM.Clause. As an answer to these challenges, the company puts their cherry tomatoes in the spotlight: Genio, Creativo & Dolcetini 

Ideal shelf-life, a must have for the food chain
"Genio, Creativo & Dolcetini are champions in our cherry range, and they can be available in the fruit and vegetable section all year round. Thanks to the adaptability of their supply and their ideal shelf life, they also meet consumer expectation, who want more than anything else tomatoes with taste", Manuel adds. "Consumption of cherry tomatoes grows steadily in Europe, which is no surprise considering modern consumer behavior: ease of preparation, less food waste, healthy snacking and - cherry (tomato) on the cake - children love them." 

Genio variety

Dolcetini variety

All links in the chain
“As a breeder, our task is to provide varieties that can be appreciated by all links in the chain; therefore, we actively collaborate with everyone so that the client can receive products with good organoleptic qualities and premium quality and taste, which are what the final consumer demands.”

HM.Clause, a major player in tomatoes
Behind the brand name Clause is the HM.Clause company, active in the breeding of tomato varieties for over 80 years. HM.Clause is the leader in cherry tomato seeds in Spain, Italy and Morocco. "A team of breeders is dedicated to the cherry program, with numerous research trials in all three countries aiming at breeding varieties adapted to its vegetable producing customers." 

Creativo variety

In other product segments, such as round, beef or elongated tomatoes, HM.Clause drives its variety breeding programs towards an association of optimum shelf-life and excellence in organoleptic quality. "Among recent product launches, it is worth mentioning Harrison, Kabrera and Badira tomatoes as they perfectly meet the requirements of both food retailing and consumers." 

Harrison was launched in 2019 in Spain: “Harrison tomatoes are ovoid in shape, intensely red and have the perfect firmness. In addition to a great shelf-life it also displays a high brix. Size, firmness, color and taste all meet into Harrison", Manuel shows. 

Kabrera, a round fleshy type, was launched both in Spain and in Italy: “Kabrera is a genuine revolution in the “beef tomato” segment. Its fruit are large, full and fleshy; they handle manipulations well and have a long shelf life while offering excellent taste qualities!", adds Giovanni Canino,  Regional Development Manager in Sicily tells.

Then there is Badira, a round shaped type tomato produced in Morocco, has an excellent firmness and ideal shelf-life. “The additional assets of Badira are caliber homogeneity and persistent round shape. It can be available all year round.” Mohamed Chari, Specialist Tomato Morocco at HM.Clause concludes.