How to Make Tomatoes Taste Good Again

Why are so many supermarket tomatoes tasteless and rock hard?

Tomato 58d131843cb3b
American Chemical Society

Why are so many supermarket tomatoes tasteless and rock hard? In the 1990s, breeders developed a tomato that produces less of the hormone ethylene, so they stay hardened for shipping and then ripen in store.

That delayed ripening combined with other breeding moves have made tomatoes bigger, redder and great for shipping, but also less satisfying in salad.

This video from the American Chemical Society shows how scientists are learning how tomatoes mature so that soon you may see and taste entirely different tomatoes at the supermarket.

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