What were you doing on April 6? I’m willing to bet you weren’t hosting a tomato-themed party or proclaiming your undying love for a certain red fruit to anyone who would listen. I’m also assuming that you weren’t watching heated debates about whether tomatoes should be bound to their scientific classification as fruits, or stick to the nutritionist classification as vegetables. Well, to be perfectly honest, I wasn’t either—but why would anyone even consider participating in any one of these seemingly ridiculous activities? It’s because April 6 is National Fresh Tomato Day in the United States—a day to celebrate and enjoy one of life’s simplest pleasures, the tomato itself.
Tomatoes deserve some recognition. In 2017, tomatoes accounted for 17% of all vegetables grown globally, totaling 182 million tons of produce. That’s enough for each person in the US to have 12 new tomatoes every week, making them the most popular vegetable in the world. This comes as no surprise since tomatoes are also a superfood filled with rich nutrients, essential vitamins, and many antioxidants. Tomatoes support a healthy immune system and heart, and they can even decrease the likelihood of blood clots, strokes, and certain cancers.
It’s difficult to pinpoint the exact origin of tomatoes, though it is believed that they are descendants of a much smaller, berry-like fruit (similar to the modern-day cherry tomato) of Mexican and Peruvian origin. As this species of prehistoric tomato spread north into the wetter climates of Mesoamerica, it adapted to its new environments. Up to this point, the vegetable had evolved without human interference; however, as it became more prevalent in Mesoamerica, the tomatoes were cultivated by indigenous people and referred to as “tomatl.” These tomatoes vastly differed from those that we see in supermarkets today because they were grown in huge varieties with unique flowers, colors, shapes, and sizes. Around the 16th century, Spanish conquistadors brought tomatoes back to Spain, where they were presented to wealthy Europeans as crops from the New World. Shortly after, they continued on their journey to Italy, where they were described as “golden apples” by Renaissance artists. Since then, tomatoes have been continually cultivated and have made their way across the globe.
In the 1700s, many rich Europeans died from improper food preparation because of the lack of knowledge about the tomato. To make matters worse, tomatoes are part of the nightshade family, a category of poisonous plants. These unfortunate factors earned the vegetable the name “poison apple” and led to a dramatic downfall in tomato popularity. However, the tomatoes were resilient. Over the next century, as these concerns were disproven and the worrisome rumors surrounding tomatoes subsided, the vegetable bounced back. Its flavor shined through and it quickly became a staple in the cuisine of many countries.
Today, over 6000 tomato varieties are commercially grown in over 170 countries. Its rise to fame certainly hasn’t been easy, but by exploring its unique history, I hope you’ve gained at least a little appreciation for the tomato. Next time you bite into a cheese pizza or dip your grilled cheese into tomato soup, remember the red ingredient that made it all possible.
