It's a little bit about timing. It's also a little bit about American history. Putting those two things together is what's behind a new U.S. tomato grower launching in the second quarter of 2026.
Following the decision in July by the U.S. government to terminate the U.S.-Mexico Tomato Suspension Agreement, plans continued, but didn't accelerate necessarily, for Pluck'd, an Austinville, Va.-based company. Its plans were to begin shipping its high-flavor tomatoes in Q2 2026 given that's when the tomato growing region shifts in North America.
© Pluck'd
L: An early look at building the greenhouse; R: the Pluck'd team from the recent New York Produce Show.
So, the company continued building its 66-acre greenhouses in Virginia where it would grow tomatoes from seeds selected from expert breeders in the Netherlands. "We analyzed over a billion data points from weather stations east of the Mississippi. We've seen some companies selecting their sites and running into issues with the climate. However, based on our analysis, we found Austinville has the perfect climate for tomato growing and also pollination. We call it the Goldilocks zone for the bees," says Andrew Shields of Pluck'd.
How about that American history? Well, as Shields says, tomatoes should be grown in the U.S. given that back in the early 1800s, Thomas Jefferson reportedly ate a whole tomato in front of a crowd of people. It was a shocking act at the time when people believed that red fruit was poisonous. "Since he was a respected statesman, he was able to convince people otherwise and tomato planting for food began to spread rapidly." he says. "It just makes sense to grow in the U.S."
Selling U.S.-grown
In fact, America will be very much featured on the packaging for the items entering three segments in the tomato category: tomato-on-the-vine or TOV/slicer or "Preemos"; cocktail tomatoes or "Plucculents"; and the snacking tomato or "Plucklings", though the company's snacking tomatoes has a unique shape. "We're going to have "Always grown in the US" with the flag and a lot of retailers are telling us that's the number one thing they love on our packaging. I think there's an appetite to kind of come back to that," he says, noting that the packaging itself will also be unique. "We're going to have pro-seal, but the rest of the package is going to be corrugate that's 100 percent recyclable."
© Pluck'dPreemos are the company's entry into the TOV/slicer category.
All of this is designed to move away from higher-yielding, lower flavor tomato growing that happens in places such as Mexico and Canada, says Shields. "Our location is within a day's drive of 60 percent of the U.S. population. When tomatoes are picked across the border now, they're not picked ripe. They have up to seven days to travel and are ethylene gassed to force harvest as they go. We'll harvest or "pluck" them and deliver them to East Coast distribution centers within 24 hours," he says.
The company will have its first planting within a month and then plans to have product on shelves in April.
This is all happening amidst tomato supply being in a bit of an odd place. "With the Tomato Suspension Agreement and treaties being renegotiated and then tariffs, there's uncertainty," says Shields. "Retailers are telling us they want reliable supply and stable pricing. With the uncertainty going on, having reliability and stability is especially critical to retailers right now. That's the challenge Pluck'd is looking to address."
For more information:
Andrew Shields
Pluck'd
[email protected]
https://www.pluckd.com/
