Organic industry tomatoes are doing very well at the La Cesenate processing company. "So far, we have processed 40% the 40 thousand tons of organic tomatoes we expect to achieve by the end of the season," explains manager Arturo Santini. The products made are then sold worldwide under the Alce Nero brand.
La Cesenate headquarters in Cesena.
The products are shipped to Europe, the Middle East, the United States and South Africa. "Our organic tomato sauce is very popular, as people prefer organic products more and more. We would like to be able to process only organic tomatoes in the future."
The price of organic tomatoes is much higher than that of the traditional varieties - something like €135 against €86. This compensates for problems during cultivation and for lower yields.
"La Cesenate" processes tomatoes from the Ravenna and Ferrara provinces. Between 6 and 12-14 hours pass between harvesting and processing. "We owe the excellent quality of our products to this. That is why we try to work only with growers located nearby."
The company also processes fruit to make purees. "In addition, our flavoured sauces are becoming increasingly popular - I am talking about a tomato base to which we add oil, spices or vegetables."
Quality had been excellent up until last week, when heavy rain affected the colour and Brix levels. Despite this, 2016 will be remembered as a good year.