News
After the all-high prices of 2023, the average reference price per tonne of processing tomatoes started to decline in 2024 and is still declining this year. However, the still-high values in Europe are keeping the overall level above that of 2022.
The global correction of processing tomato prices continued into the 2026 season, marking the third consecutive year of deflation following the historic 2023 peak. According to the latest industry data information presented in the recent AMITOM and WPTC season reports, the estimated global average reference price for raw material fell to USD 108 per metric tonne, representing a 5.2% decrease from last year’s USD 114 benchmark. While prices remain well above the pre-pandemic average of USD 70–80, the deceleration of the drop, shifting from a steep USD 13 drop in 2024 to a gentler USD 6 reduction this year, suggests the market is bottoming out and approaching a new baseline stabilization level.
The corresponding tonnages, since this estimate consists of a weighted value covering all tonnages for which information is available, represent, at the time of writing, just under 30 million tonnes of tomatoes, i.e., nearly 70% of the quantities that the global industry plans to process during the 2026 season. It also represents the majority of tonnages destined for global tomato pastes supplies.
The information collected concerns California, Argentina, China, Italy, Turkey, Spain, Greece, Portugal and France, and will eventually be supplemented as the harvest progresses. The levels observed in the three major processing areas maintain historical relative positions: the highest values, around USD 123/metric tonne, are recorded in Europe, the lowest, around USD 70/tonne, in China, while Californian prices are around USD 115/tonne.
This global average indicative value of USD 108 per tonne is 5.7% lower than that recorded for the 2025 season and 13% lower than the average of the last three seasons. China is the only country with an increase of 7% compared to last year.
To put the scale of our sector’s activity into perspective globally, the total value of the 2026 harvest is estimated to be between US$4.2 billion and US$4.4 billion (€3.6 billion to €3.8 billion).
Looking ahead, the dramatic price volatility of recent years seems to be in the past. With the global average compressing to USD 108/tonne, further sharp declines are unlikely. Barring any late-season weather or energy shocks, the market could now be bottoming out and heading toward a period of stable, predictable pricing.
Some complementary data
Comparison and trends in indicative reference prices for processing tomatoes in the five largest processing countries and the overall weighted average.
Source: WPTC
