Tomato prices in 2010

[Farmer Matt]

What is the prices Heirloom's around the U.S. now at farmers markets.

[heirloomdaddy]

I'm in los angeles, so cost of living is high but I'm paying around 3-3.50 per lb...for not particularly good tomatoes.

[goodwin]

Those varieties are selling for $6.00/lb here in Santa Fe, but it's still quite early in the season. There are a couple hydroponic greenhouse vendors and we have been bringing field-grown tomatoes. We'll stay at $6 until August when the rest of the farms in the valley begin producing and the price drops.

[nctomatoman]

At the Raleigh Farmer's Market the only non-hybrids you typically see are German Johnson, and even they go for 2.99/pound. In the grocery stores, the possibly picked-nearly green and shipment ripened heirlooms that tend to not be worth the money are 3.99 at least, often as high as 5-6 dollars per pound.

[mensplace]

Trouble here at the small farmers market in town is that some of the folks are participating just to have something to do, so they are selling Big Boys for 1.00 a pound, which surely impacts the sales of others. Just to introduce the locals to heirlooms, I had to sell mine at 2.50 a pound when I first attended, but moved that up to 3.00 on the second visit. Almost all here just want anything large and red that they can throw on a sandwich. Most still don't have a clue what heirloom means or why they would pay extra. Quite a learning curve locally.

[ireilly]

So a marketing type would tell you to increase the price to appeal to those who must have something no one else can have, and then once the word makes its way around, then the demand will build downward through the social layers, until everyone wants one. Vis-a-vis anything made by Apple (not that I say they have no value or style, because they do, but whether it is worth it to any one person is a personal choice that I, probably called Luddite, continue to eschew).

This is the same issue/problem I hope to face in the future. I have to actually produce some tomatoes though, first.

Off my soapbox!

Walter

[Bama mater]

Originally Posted by mensplace

Trouble here at the small farmers market in town is that some of the folks are participating just to have something to do, so they are selling Big Boys for 1.00 a pound, which surely impacts the sales of others. Just to introduce the locals to heirlooms, I had to sell mine at 2.50 a pound when I first attended, but moved that up to 3.00 on the second visit. Almost all here just want anything large and red that they can throw on a sandwich. Most still don't have a clue what heirloom means or why they would pay extra. Quite a learning curve locally.

I hear ya.

I planted early this year and started getting ripe ones for market 2nd week of June. I start out selling @ $3.00 lb thru July at the market and to chefs, but this year as the heat hit hard the quality begins to dwindle so I drop to 2.50 but never going below 2.00. I found that the people that know what a real tomato is appreciate you growing them and don't mind paying a little extra.

[GIZZARDFARM]

1.50 LB FOR NON HYBRIDS AND 1.00 LB FOR HYBRIDS HERE IN SOUTHEAST TENNESSEE

[gardenfrog]

Ouch, Gizzard Farm!

[Timmah!]

Wow, that's almost giving them away. Even the bland, mushballs they pass for tomatoes @ Wal mart sell for around $2.50.

[Wi-sunflower]

One tip for anyone wanting to get a decent price for your heirlooms -- give taste samples if you are allowed to.

I have a market that is notoriously CHEAP !!! Often they want tomatoes for less than $1 / lb or a bushel for less than $15.

Last year we had a table with about a dozen of our new special varieties like NAR, Orange Russian 117, Vera's Seed, Coustralee, and others I can't think of right now. We had plates with cut peices and toothpicks for sampling. On the shelf next to the table were the tomatoes to buy at $2/lb (this was late in the season when prices are always lower than now). After they had tasted these great tomatoes NO ONE complained about the price. Several of the tomatoes went for $5 each.

Offering tastes is especially important because often the heirlooms aren't "perfect" like all those store tomatoes. For me, if I can't offer tastes, often the customers don't even look at my lumpy, maybe a bit cracked, over-priced, to them, tomatoes. That's why at one of my markets where the local health dept won't allow sampling anything you have to cut, I only take my cherry tomatoes. I can let them sample any number of whole cherries and that really sells them.

Just my experiences,
Carol

[dustdevil]

I would like to add to what Carol said...besides being able to taste them, the cut samples show how yummy they look inside!

[Frog]

About $1.30/lb here in England, that's for poor quality Spanish grown rubbish. $1.50/lb for better quality Italian grown tomatoes. Heirlooms are not readily available but you're talking about $3.00/lb when you can find them.

Tomato quality is shocking in the UK, people only seem to want bland red round fruit. The market for blemish free smooth cherry tomatoes is huge, but it's all about look and not taste.

[JackE]

Originally Posted by Frog

Tomato quality is shocking in the UK, people only seem to want bland red round fruit. The market for blemish free smooth cherry tomatoes is huge, but it's all about look and not taste.

That really surprises me. I always thought the British were sophisticated about everything. Sounds like rural East Texas - all about looks and not taste. The heirloom OPs that these folks are selling for $3/# wouldn't bring anymore at our vegetable stand than red commercial determinates. And they have to be blemish-free.

We are a church-based non-profit and use a voluntary donation can - no set price. Interestingly, tomatoes still average around $1/#. Most of our customers are poor (our stand is in an impoverished rural area) and they only buy our vegetables because they are cheaper in price than Wal-Mart, and they won't take anything -even for free - that doesn't look exactly like grocery store produce. That's all they have to go on, the only standard they know.

Many don't put any money in the can, but we do pick-up some generous customers from the Highway, and we also have a number of middle class folks who buy our veggies and are very generous. All proceeds after expenses are used for our youth programs.

In the course of a year, we grow and distribute tons of fresh produce.

Jack

[dustdevil]

In support of English gardeners with allotments, I know some grow top notch vege.