Reader’s Digest: February 2022

In February 2022, we published the following articles:

• Divergent information from different sources on the surplus in the European tomato paste trade balance.
• The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) proposes to considerably lower the Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) of Bisphenol A (BPA), compared to its previous assessment in 2015 and following a thorough assessment over several years.
• In Brazil, Tomate BR, the Brazilian Association of Tomato Processors and Industrial Users, recently expressed factors of concern such as the sharp increase on production costs and the risk of product shortages.
• In California, the use of a cover cropping system has proven effective in controlling Morning Glory and has some other benefits as well.
• The European carbon price went above 96 Euros and analysts expect that the 100 Euros level will be breached soon.
• Italy: dossier on the main dynamics of the 2021 season, from the ISMEA report (part 1 & 2)
• Global Imports of Tomato Products, updated 8 February 2022.
• The companies NRGene and Philoseed partnered to develop varieties resistant to ToBRFV. They reached a major milestone in discovering a unique tomato genomic region and are in the process of patent protection.
• In Portugal, the average productivity in 2021 was the highest ever recorded, with an average yield close to 104 tonnes / hectare.
• In Zimbabwe, state-owned enterprise Arda is planning to ramp up a tomato processing and canning plant, while in Cameroon, the company Sotreas is planning to launch to construction of a tomato processing factory.
• The Tomato World 2022 Conference, organized by OI Pomodoro Nord Italia, will take place on February 18. The main topic will be the national strategic plan for the CAP 2023-2027.
• World Tomato Paste Trade in 2020/2021: most of the sector's growth comes from the rise of  "low-concentration" products.
• In Italy, 24 Ore is organizing an online webinar on February 24. Its topic is "Italian Industrial Tomato: Challenges, Scenarios & Strategies".
• WPTC Crop Update as of 15 February 2022
• Paste Prices, February 2022: USA, Spain, Portugal, Italy, China, Chile.
• The entire agro-industrial sector is affected by the price surge in overhead costs, fuel prices, and raw materials. In addition, the situation of maritime transport is becoming extremely chaotic and other sectors such as packaging are also impacted.
• Olam is planning to sell off the tomato processing side of the Lemoore plant and to retain 10 acres of the site to continue its granulated garlic business.
• In Spain, the growers and processors of Extremadura reached a price agreement at EUR 102 per tonne, which is 30% higher than last season.
• Mintec Global Commodity Report February 2022
• Research shows that the Tomato Yellow Curl Virus (TYLCV) is able to protect tomato host plants against extreme drought. This would mean infecting TYLCV-resistant tomato lines with the virus before planting.
• Global Exports of Tomato Paste, updated 24 February 2022.
• In Italy, Napolina owner Princes partnered with Oxfam, in order to protect workers' rights across its supply chain. They will tackle exploitation challenges within the supply chains of direct suppliers and other producers in the Apulia region.
• AMITOM expects a smaller 2022 crop of 17.4 million tonnes, which represents and 8% reduction from 2021.
• In a meta-analysis conducted by researchers from Iran and Canada, conclusions are that lycopene supplementation was associated with significant reductions in systolic blood pressure (SBP), with greater effects in people with higher SBP at the start, higher lycopene doses and longer duration supplementation.
• Editorial on Russia's invasion of Ukraine

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