Fresh Tomato Overview
The early history of the tomato in the United States was characterized by the colonialist belief that the brightly colored fruit was poisonous. By the time commercial production began in the mid-1800s, the tomato was well established as a popular produce item in the American diet. By 2008, nearly 2 million tons of commercial fresh-market tomatoes were produced in the United States annually. In addition, 12 million tons of processing tomatoes were produced. In the United States, the two tomato industries (fresh market and processing) are distinctly separate. Processing tomatoes account for the majority of tomato tonnage, while the comparatively higher prices of fresh-market tomatoes make them higher ranked in terms of value.  January 2009 ... Fresh Tomatoes
 

Processed Tomato Overview
The U.S. tomato processing industry, comprised primarily of tomato pastes, sauces and canned tomato products, is distinctly separate from the fresh-market industry. Specific characteristic differences separate tomatoes entering the two markets: fresh-market varieties are juicier and harvested when immature, while processing varieties contain higher percentages of soluble solids, are vine ripened and have a thicker skin than fresh-market tomatoes to survive mechanical harvesting and bulk transport.

The marketing methods of the two industry segments differ as well. The majority of fresh tomatoes are handpicked and sold on the open market, while all processed tomatoes are mechanically harvested and sold under contract. Although the harvest tonnage of processing tomatoes is five to six times larger than that of fresh tomatoes, the low market value for processing tomatoes in terms of dollars per pound make fresh-market tomatoes responsible for a larger share of U.S. total crop value than processed tomatoes.  January 2009 ... Processed Tomatoes

Marketing

• China Agricultural Data, Agricultural Issues Center, University of California, 2001 - Information on production, cost of production and trade.
• EU Support Reductions Would Benefit California Tomato Growers and Processors, Agricultural Issues Center, University of California, 2006 - This article presents simulation model results from a 50 percent reduction in European Union Trade barriers and subsidies.
  
• Florida Tomato Committee.
• Fresh and Processing Tomatoes: World Markets & Trade, Foreign Ag Service (FAS), USDA, 2008.
• Fresh Tomatoes, Vegetables and Melons Outlook, Economic Research Service (ERS), USDA, 2004.
• Fruits and Vegetable Outlook, National Food and Agriculture Policy Project (NFAPP), Arizona State University, 2008 - Production, consumption and price outlooks for fresh-market tomatoes and for processed tomatoes.
• Greenhouse Tomatoes Change the Dynamics of the North American Greenhouse Tomato Industry, ERS, USDA, 2005 -The North American greenhouse tomato industry has grown rapidly since the early 1990s and now plays a major role in the fresh tomato industry.
  
• Processing Tomatoes, Vegetables and Melons Outlook, ERS, USDA, 2005.
  
• Vegetables, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), USDA - This report, issued five times a year, provides data on tomatoes, including area harvested, prospective area, yield and production for major states.
• Vegetables and Melons Situation and Outlook Yearbook, ERS, USDA, 2008.
• Vegetables and Melons: Tomatoes, ERS, USDA.
• Vegetables 2007 Summary, NASS, USDA, 2008.

Processing/Manufacturing

• Effects of Price Premiums for Multiple Product Attributes on Product Quality: California Processing Tomatoes, Agricultural Issues Center, University of California, 2006 - Alexander and others examine how growers respond to price incentives and how these incentives interact for two important processing tomato quality attributes: limited-use tomatoes and material other than tomatoes.
• Fresh Fruit, Vegetable, Nut and Specialty Crop Grade Standards, Ag Marketing Service (AMS), USDA.
• Tomato: Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality, University of California, Davis, 2006.

Production

• Budget for Greenhouse Tomatoes, Mississippi State University Extension, revised 2007.
• Fresh-Market Tomato Production in California, Vegetable Research and Information Center, University of California, 2000.
• Growing Hydroponic Tomatoes, University of Arizona, 2000.
• Key Points of Control and Management of Microbial Food Safety: Information for Producers, Processors, and Handlers of Fresh Market Tomatoes, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California - Free download. 
• PlantFacts, Ohio State University - This Web site provides a full-text search engine of all extension and academic department information from all land-grant universities in the United States. Additionally, there are significant image and video databases, a FAQ database and a glossary.
• Production of Greenhouse Tomatoes, Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, reviewed 2008.
• Selected costs and returns budgets for horticultural food crops, Virginia Tech, 2001 - This link provides production cost estimates for ground grown and stringweave tomatoes. It also has estimates on drip irrigation and a solid-set sprinkler system.
• Watering Tomatoes Drip by Drip, Cornell University - This research-based document provides helpful information on irrigation systems.
• What's Wrong with my Tomatoes?, Cornell University, 2006.

Businesses/Case Studies

• Eatwell Farm, Winters, California - This farm raises between 40 to 50 different organic products. It is known as "Tomato Wonderland" because of its testing of heirloom and modern varieties of tomatoes. Tomatoes are marketed through a farmers market and through the farm's own Community Supported Ag Program.
• Long Wind Farm, Thetford, Vermont - This farm has grown organic tomatoes for more than 10 years. It has a 1.3-acre greenhouse. The farm supplies tomatoes to supermarket chains throughout the Northeastern United States.
• Verrill Farm, Concord, Massachusetts - This farm grows 140 acres of fruits and vegetables, including 30 varieties of heirloom tomatoes. Produce is marketed through a farm stand and to many restaurants in Boston.
  

Links checked January 2010.