Last June Fresh Air aired an interview with Barry Estabrook based on Barry Estabrook‘s book Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit
I have not read the book, but the interview with Estabrook was endlessly fascinating. I guess anyone who has made the mistake of purchasing a tomato in the winter from a big box grocery store knows how actual garden tomatoes don’t even compare, but it sounds like his book tells us why this is the case. Much of the reason is through breeding and development that favors ship-ability, volume, and attractiveness of the fruit rather than nutrition and taste, and another reason is inhospitable climates that the tomatoes are grown in. He also delves into the horrendous labor practices in the tomato industry, and how some growers have been successfully prosecuted for having slaves. I learned a bunch of other stuff, too, but I’m trying to keep this post to a palatable length.
I had always assumed that tomatoes are grown in Florida because the climate is perfect for them, but apparently this is not the case. The humidity is actually really bad for the tomato plants, and so the farmers are resigned to constantly spraying their crops so as to prevent mildew and disease problems that would naturally arise. Estabrook has identified 100 different herbicides and pesticides that are recommended for farmers in Florida to use on one crop of tomatoes.
Thinking back to my own experience with tomatoes, it makes sense that Florida is not ideal. Our summers here are much shorter than Florida, but it still gets very humid. By the end of the 2010 summer year all my tomato plants were a pretty sad sight from the powdery mildew that I was unable to control. Last year it was less of a problem because I did a few things differently:
1. watered early in the day.
2. avoided water on the leaves of the plants while watering.
3. spaced the plants properly.
4. Got lucky.
Posted by Erica on 04.21.2012 at 9:02 am
You can buy seeds for resistant cultivars: http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/Tables/TomatoTable.html.
Just because a pesticide is recommended doesn’t mean it’s used. Often extension agencies will publish a list of several pesticides that are indicated for control of pest x. That doesn’t mean farmers use all of them, it means they pick one based on EPA regulations, cost, whether the formulation works with the equipment they have, the climate and soil type where they farm, other pests in the agroecosystem, and so on. Pesticide application is based on economic threshold – the higher the value of the crop, the lower the tolerance for damage. Tomatoes destined for canning or ketchup tolerate a lot more damage than tomatoes destined for the shelf. Spraying is expensive, so if possible they fix the problem with other control methods. And if there is no pest problem, obviously they don’t spray. I don’t know why all these authors insist on scaring people to death about agriculture.
“Stints working on a dairy farm and a commercial fishing boat as a young man convinced Barry Estabrook that writing about how food was produced was a hell of a lot easier than actually producing it.”
Oh.
Posted by rakhi on 04.21.2012 at 2:26 pm
Thanks for that link! I can’t believe there are only two cultivars that are resistant to powdery mildew. I’m definitely going to try one this year.
Like I said, I haven’t read the book, but I don’t think that the implication was that tomato farmers use all those pesticides for every crop. I think that fact was just used to demonstrate the inhospitably of the environment that the tomatoes are grown in.
And I don’t think that his intention is to scare people to death. I think that he’s shedding light on an area that people rarely scrutinize because we’re so removed from production of our food. I find it completely fascinating
Posted by rakhi on 04.21.2012 at 2:35 pm
Holy crap! It’s over $1 a seed for Geronimo tomatoes! That’s one of the two that are resistant to powdery mildew. Damn. I will risk the mildew.
Posted by Erica on 04.22.2012 at 9:05 am
$1/seed isn’t so much when you consider how much work goes into plant breeding, how highly trained scientists are, and how much infrastructure the process requires.
I do agree that crops should mainly be grown in environments that make sense.
Posted by rakhi on 04.25.2012 at 10:40 am
$1 a seed is expensive considering all my other seeds are free
But I hear ya, sister!
Posted by Thelma on 04.17.2012 at 8:49 pm
The path of the production tomato is the same for most grocery store vegetables. It’s all about packing and processing efficiency. Thank goodness for the existence of heirloom varieties. By the way….how’s the garden coming? My lettuce, spinach and arugula are up. So exciting!!
Posted by rakhi on 04.17.2012 at 9:18 pm
I hear ya re: heirlooms
I have so much stuff started! I’m pumped! Spinach, arugula, kale, lettuce, swiss chard, kohlrabi, carrots, radishes, beets, potatoes, onions, fava beans, cilantro, dill, parsley, and peas coming up! Holy crap, I had no idea how much there was until I just typed it out. lol. Hopefully they all stick around
Posted by mentos on 06.22.2012 at 4:03 am
hi i am from ethiopia(developing country) , i am horticulturist mean agronomist so i am workinkg on tomato on open field and in tomto their is problem on growth (height of tomto high ) what shall i do please
Posted by rakhi on 06.26.2012 at 11:58 am
Hi, Mentos! I’m so sorry that I’m not familiar with the growing conditions in Ethiopia, and I’m definitely not an expert. I did find this organization in a quick online search, and maybe they can help you? http://www.homegardensofethiopia.com/news.html
Posted by schmillen on 04.16.2012 at 2:45 pm
drip irrigation saved our buns from the mildew. it’s most efficient with the water too as it goes straight to the root and there’s way less evaporation.
another fun way to space things out and let the plants breathe is vertical growing. i’ll let you know how that works this season, rak
Posted by rakhi on 04.17.2012 at 9:45 pm
Thanks, dollface
I’m looking at some drip irrigation supplies right now. That looks like a project for *next* summer…