Hans Driessen of Bayer Crop Science, the produce chain specialist of the Intense tomato, is naturally proud of this campaign. It is also not just an once-off. He has noticed that the industry is becoming increasingly interested in this variety. "The sandwich industry has been around for years. Lately, we have been seeing that other processors are also realising the benefits of this tomato. One of it's characteristics is that is firm, and does not make the bread soggy. Just as important is the the product is easy to process, and also does not fall apart once heated, like on top of a pizza, for instance."
Unit price per ingredient
When it comes to processing, costs naturally play an important role. "You see more and more that the industry is calculating net product costs, and not products' gross cost. Since the Intense tomatoes perform so well during processing, you get a much higher net yield per kg than with other varieties. This then means you have to calculate the unit price of each ingredient. We see service restaurants and the food service industry doing this more and more."
When it comes to processing, costs naturally play an important role. "You see more and more that the industry is calculating net product costs, and not products' gross cost. Since the Intense tomatoes perform so well during processing, you get a much higher net yield per kg than with other varieties. This then means you have to calculate the unit price of each ingredient. We see service restaurants and the food service industry doing this more and more."
Freshness and origin
There is a website as part of the video campaign. Here Domino's emphasises the tomatoes' freshness and origin. "Our fresh tomatoes come from the Netherlands, and go from field to plate within 48 hours. Our shops are, therefore, supplied with vegetables that were harvested just 48 hours ago", they write. "The cooperation between the processors and Domino's is, in this regard, also good", confirms Hans. These tomatoes' characteristics are also pointed out. "Our tomatoes was specifically cultivated for our product, in order to have more taste, firmness and texture on the pizza. They have even been given a special, appropriate name - the Intense," reads the website.
Common denominator in the market
Hans also sees this as an opportunity to makes contact with a new sector. "It is of vital important for us, as breeders, to play into the market. We, therefore, want to hear which varieties we can improve on, in order to simplify the processing of that product. Do people, for example, want more elongated tomatoes which could reduce wastage? We would like to know about this. In this way, we can remove the common denominator from the market, and further develop our varieties."
For more information:
Hans Driessen
Bayer
152 Napoleonsweg
6083 AB Nunhem
Tel: +31 475 599 130
hans.driessen@bayer.com
www.bayer.com