Reader’s Digest – July 2022

In July 2022, we published the following articles:

• In Italy, after long negotiations, an agreement was reached for the South Central Basin, at 130 EUR for round tomatoes, 140 EUR for oblong and a supplement of 30 EUR for organic.
• WPTC Crop Update as of 1 July 2022.
• In India, the Agriculture Marketing Department introduced two "Mobile Tomato Processing Unit" which aim is to convert normal tomato yield into value-added products. This could help farmers who suffer from high price fluctuations.
• In Northern Italy, producers' organizations and processing companies gave signed 125 contracts for the 2022 season.
• In Italy, Casalasco S.p.A. acquired 73,8% of Emiliana Conserve and becomes one of the world top 10 companies in this field.
• In France, the French interbranch organization, SONITO, held its General Assembly in June and is working on reviving the tomato industry.
• Global Imports of Tomato Products, updated 11 July 2022.
• California Crop Situation as of 9 July 2022.
• A new study suggests that the tomato harvest could be halved before the end of the century due to global warming.
• The Italian company Steriltom completed the acquisition of Italtom.
• The operations for the top 10 processing countries are expected to account for just under 84,5% of the total global quantities in 2022. This represents a substantial increase in the weight of the top 10.
• In Spain, the lack of water for irrigation in the Lower Guadalquivir area causes the production to move to Cadiz, with a huge financial impact for the processors.
• In Australia, Kagome is asking for government intervention to secure gas for manufacturing at a competitive price.
• Europe is facing a fertilizer crisis, as it is overly dependent on Russia, and the supply is now limited.
• An article in the Journal of Nutrition, June 2022 issue, presents results from reviewing 21 published reports.  The authors conclude that tomatoes and lycopene have anti-prostate cancer activity and that more work is needed on this topic.
• In the UK, some Kraft Heinz products are unavailable in Tesco stores due to a pricing dispute on who should bear the costs for food inflation and how.
• California Crop Situation as of 16 July 2022.
• Hyle Capital Partners announced the acquisition of the Italian company Guaresi Spa.
• The industrial tomato campaign started in Northern Italy, with a 4% drop on surface compared to 2021. The main concern is the current drought and the availability of irrigation.
• Presentation from Massimiliano Beretta (ISI Sementi) during the 14^th WPTC Congress on breeding for changing conditions and new diseases.
• WPTC Crop Update as of 22 July 2022.
• The value of the TOP 20 import markets continues to increase. The value of overall imports could exceed USD 6.6 billion in 2022.
• In Italy, the Coldiretti study underlines that the climate (drought and scorching temperatures) has cut the tomato harvest by 11%.
• California Crop Situation as of 23 July 2022.
• The European Commission requested scientific advice from the EFSA on the development of harmonized mandatory front-of-pack nutrition labeling.

You can find the individual articles in the NEWS list and/or search by keyword, date etc.