Sweet secrets
Posted on April 15, 2019
Our very own Nasir Ahmed has appeared on BBC One’s Supermarket Secrets alongside Gregg Wallace and our tomato grower, Andy Roe.
Our Manager – Technical Produce, Nasir Ahmed speaking to BBC One’s Gregg Wallace
Nasir discussed sugar levels in tomatoes and his quest for a large slicing tomato with the sweetness of a small, salad tomato.
Described as the Willy Wonka of tomatoes, Andy Roe uses ingenious growing techniques to make sweeter tomatoes for Asda customers, such as the Goutini.
The ‘Willy Wonka’ of tomatoes, Andy Roe
In order to grow the Goutini, the plant is stressed to mimic drought conditions, which encourages it to bring all available sugar to the fruit. Whereas in the evening, the temperature in the greenhouse is rapidly dropped, meaning the leaves cool much quicker than the fruit. This makes the plant think that the leaves are asleep, so again it pushes all available sugars into the fruit.
This featured episode of Supermarket Secrets is available to watch on BBC iPlayer until 10th May.
