Tomatoes, tomatoes and more tomatoes. At a time when tomato supply in the industry generally is on the tighter side, you would never know it having walked through the CPMA Convention + Trade Show 2026 held this year in downtown Toronto.
While field tomatoes were also on display, it's Canada which meant the greenhouses were very much present with their tomato offerings. These included tomatoes for sauce or otherwise, such as Topline's San Marizano-style SanZano tomato, but more often than not, it was snacking tomatoes such as Red Sun Farms' colorful Chef's Collection tomato product. A close second on the smaller veggie products making an impression were cucumbers, such as Mastronardi's Pop Its, or Mucci Farms' CuteCucumber, or mini peppers–think, the new seedless mini peppers that one of Oppy's partner growers, Perpetual Vegetable Co., is introducing.
Click here for the photo report from the show.
© Astrid van den Broek | FreshPlaza.com
Products from the New Product Showcase.
Potatoes and root vegetables also had developments on display that were eye-catching--think flavored potato air fryer kits or raw carrot fries with seasoning packs that can also be cooked up in the air fryer.
Packaging innovations can always be found at the show and many were featured in the New Product Showcase. This included paper carry packs that Vineland Growers had on display or the new sustainable top seal for Del Fresco Pure's The Original Cherry Tomatoes on the Vine.
Steady traffic
Meanwhile, concerns the day before over the show's seemingly slow attendance were abated by the second day with exhibitors generally agreeing that the crowd seemed more steady than slow. In fact, there was some low-key chatter over hearing that some 60+ attendees from Canadian retailer Longo's would be visiting on the second day of the show.
© Astrid van den Broek | FreshPlaza.com
Click here for the photo report from the show.
Also on the show floor, amidst trade tensions between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico–all three countries who had plenty of representation in the trade show–the focus was certainly on collaborating and finding solutions together as an industry rather than taking a combative approach.
That said, the challenges of business today were certainly not ignored throughout the show. "While there's no shortage of industry pressures, there's also a significant amount of progress that we're looking towards. When we talk about the climate in our current industry, it's easy to say that it is difficult right now and there's no shortage of pressures on all of our businesses. Let's just look at that and say–how do we move forward and how do we look at the adaptive capacity that's significant in our world," said Ron Lemaire, president of the CPMA, at the Delegate Breakfast this week.
Following this year's show in Toronto, for 2027, it moves back to Vancouver and will be held April 13-15.
