Zhejiang Hosts Event to Showcase Novel Tomato Varieties in Cangnan

The 4th Zhejiang New Tomato Varieties Conference, themed“China's Red, Fruit for Shared Prosperity”, took place in Cangnan on March 14th. This event gathered over 300 participants, including renowned tomato experts and scholars from across the nation, representatives from leading scientific research institutions and seed companies, as well as technicians and big specialized households of tomatoes within the province.

As a showcase for the conference, the Cangnan Integrated Innovation Industrial Park of New Tomato Varieties and Technologies garnered much attention. Inside the park, an array of 291 tomato varieties, sourced from over 60 breeding units in 15 provinces including Beijing, Shanghai, and Shandong province, were planted along the walkways, all displaying a bounty of fruits. The vivid spectrum of red, yellow, and green tomatoes stretched across the landscape, a visual treat for the eyes. These tomatoes encompassed a diverse range of types, from large red culinary tomatoes to pink varieties suitable for both cooking and raw consumption, as well as flavorful and cherry tomatoes, greatly enhancing the dietary variety for the people.

One of the standout features of this conference was the remarkable diversity of flavors. The tomato team from Wenzhou Vocational College of Science and Technology introduced a newly bred variety named“Ouxiu 901”. This tomato is renowned for its harmonious blend of sweetness and sourness, offering a rich flavor, delicate texture, thin skin, and juicy flesh. The cultivated tomatoes also exhibited a range of tastes tailored to regional dietary habits and cultural preferences. For instance, the“Qiande Ziwa” variety, boasting a sugar content surpassing 10%, has gained popularity in Shanghai due to the locals’ fondness for sweet flavors. Conversely, the“Baiwa” and“Baiqiu” varieties offer contrasting tastes, one offering a soft texture while the other a crispy bite, catering to the different preferences of southern and northern Chinese palates.

At the recent conference, eight outstanding varieties from the Cangnan Zhiyong Vegetable Planting Professional Cooperative, including the“Vienna 2,“ were awarded the prestigious 2024 Wenzhou Fine Tomato Gold Award. Similarly, ten varieties from the Wenzhou Agricultural Sciences Institute, led by the exceptional“Ouxiu Huangying”, were recognized as the cream of the crop at the 2024 Zhejiang New Tomato Varieties Conference.

The question arises: how are these diverse and innovative varieties being utilized? Reports indicate that the“Zheyingfen 1” variety, nurtured by the  Vegetable Research Institute of Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, has taken root across the province, covering a significant planting area of approximately 30,000 mu (around 2000 hectares), with a notable portion dedicated to Wenzhou. Since the inception of this conference four years ago, nearly 40 varieties tailored to Cangnan’s fertile soil and unique climate have been introduced for widespread cultivation. Remarkably, two-thirds of the land planted in Cangnan each year is devoted to these nouveau varieties. Among these varieties, the“Wofen 2” stands out. Introduced at the second conference, it has become the cornerstone of the Cangnan Zhiyong Vegetable Planting Professional Cooperative, a renowned bastion of tomato planting in Cangnan. Its picking period extends by a month compared to other pink-fruited tomatoes, yielding an impressive harvest of 15,000 jin (about 7.5 tons) per mu. This yield surpasses ordinary culinary tomatoes by a substantial margin, making it a highly profitable choice for farmers. Its market price is also significantly higher, fetching a premium of approximately 0.3 yuan/jin.

Su Shiwen, a member of the tomato team at the Wenzhou Agricultural Sciences Institute, elaborated that in recent years, tomatoes with new flavors have emerged as a new research focus, catering to the public's desire for rich flavors and juicy textures. This conference boasted 45 varieties of flavor tomatoes. While they excel in both fresh consumption and culinary applications, they pose challenges in terms of storage and transportation. Gaining traction in the consumer market will require patience. Conversely, cherry tomato family farms have already garnered widespread praise.

Statistics reveal that the planting area dedicated to facility tomatoes in Wenzhou spans approximately 65,000 mu (around 4,333 hectares), generating a production value of nearly 1.5 billion yuan. Cangnan County, with a planting area of roughly 35,000 mu (about 2,333 hectares), stands as the largest tomato planting area in Zhejiang province. The primary tomato variety cultivated in Cangnan is the large, red vegetable tomato.(ZhongXin)