«In the fields, moving and orienting oneself at night is more difficult. The darkness doesn’t help but at least it keeps our farmers safe from the record heat of this summer.» Indeed, between the rows of San Marzano, not a breath of air passes and the perceived daytime temperatures make the fields of the Agro Sarnese-Nocerino impassable.
Read more Plant engineering and textiles drive exports from the province of Teramo
Ask the Sun
The questions are automatically suggested by 24Ore AI
based on the displayed content.
Nighttime harvesting of San Marzano
The tomatoes, traditionally grown vertically like grapevines, ripened too quickly this year: before mid-July, more than 15 days early, the harvest was already underway. Paolo Ruggiero, from Danicoop, a historic cooperative – among the largest in the area with its 40 members – which manages the entire San Marzano supply chain, up to the canned DOP peeled tomatoes (Kiros variety), feared the worst: «But our farmers, who are not exactly in the prime of their lives, organized themselves independently, changing their work shifts, from 3 to 10 and from sunset to 10 p.m.» Thus, anticipating and working at night, the farmers of the Sarnese cooperative achieved perhaps one of the best harvests ever: 9,000 quintals of sparkling San Marzano, paid to farmers at 75 cents per kg. This yields about 10 million euros.
Peeled and pureed tomatoes ready for export
All in all, losses were contained: «Just under 20%, particularly the tomatoes in the last row, the fourth, grown in the lands of San Valentino Torio. The rest of the harvest reached our plants where we process the tomatoes into peeled and pureed products. Our shipments, outside of large-scale distribution, then depart abroad. We export 60% of our product which reaches as far as Korea, destined worldwide for pizzerias and restaurants».
Read more Ukraine, Kiev launches 620 drones against Moscow. At least 10 dead in Russian attack on Kharkiv
Aunt Regina and Uncle Vincenzo, icons of the Sarnese tomato
Aunt Regina, 87, and Uncle Vincenzo, 82, who have become symbols of a family farming tradition that strengthens over time – Giuseppe, Regina’s son, is also in the fields – work under the moonlight and attract chefs, tourists, and entrepreneurs. Every year, people come from all continents to discover the secrets of a fertile land of volcanic origin that produces excellent products. Paolo Ruggiero, the fourth generation in Danicoop, welcomes them. His father Edoardo is the president.
The insurmountable issue of Italian sounding
But while this year San Marzano has faced climate change, for a longer time the Sarno tomato, with its strong evocative power, has been fighting counterfeits despite the DOP: «I was at the Fancy Food show in New York and realized the problem is unsolvable. In America – Ruggiero concludes – they replaced the word tomato with San Marzano. And those at the fair, prominently displayed even in front of our institutions, were mostly fakes, even importing our label. This takes a lot away from us, considering that in the United States 95% of San Marzano is an expression of Italian sounding».
Read more Coffee, in 11 cities espresso over 1.4 euros. In Bolzano it costs more, in Messina less
