They may look ugly, like many heirloom and heirloom tomato crosses, but taste sun ripe like they grew in your backyard. As of January 18, 2007 the Ugly Ripe tomato from Florida will be allowed to be shipped out of state to markets across the country. You can now go to your market and get tasty tomatoes during the winter months until late spring. There have been legal battles for several years about this relatively new breed of tomato. It was introduced to the public in 1999 and for a few years prior to 2003 the tomatoes were test sold to see the public reaction, which was positive. Then, since 2003 the Florida Tomato Committee, which controls a majority of the $500 million dollar industry, has prevented the farm that grows them from shipping the fruit out of state. The supposed reason is that the Ugly Ripe breed of tomatoes are not uniform in shape and color, even if they taste great, and if they allow these tomatoes to be shipped then others may try to ship non-uniform specimens of regular, tasteless commercial tomatoes.
Personally I think that the pretty but flavorless tomatoes should be composted, and I'm all for ugly but tasty. So look for Ugly Ripe tomatoes, sold under the brand name Santa Sweets, at your local market. Since they are picked and shipped ripe they will be packed in white netting to protect them from bruising and will be easily identified. There is already a great demand for them, so they may not be available in large amounts for a few weeks. Hopefully the price will be as good as the taste.
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