Seminis is developing new tomato varieties that range from ‘premium’ to ‘commodities’ in order to bring certainty to any situation.
In recent years, although the total surface area for tomatoes has decreased, the area for specialities has been rising (pink, beefsteak, coloured cherry, highly flavoured…). Now, two new factors must be added to the equation: one is the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus and the other is the floods that affected hundreds of hectares in Nijar in 2019, causing serious damage and that could influence the crop decision-making for the next campaign, giving priority to other produce such as courgettes, according to Jesús Joya, a sales technician from Seminis.
Both Seminis and De Ruiter, the fruit and vegetable seed and rootstock brands from the Vegetable Division at Bayer, continue working hard to obtain the best possible varieties for the producers, marketers and the end customers, therefore, they have a wide range of options to suit their needs.
“Regarding tomatoes, we are developing materials in virtually all the different typologies. Currently, we are in advanced phases for varieties of round and plum cherry, beefsteak, vine, LSL and a marmande type with excellent flavour, high production and resistance to Ty.”
One of its new developments is SVTH 1214, a beefsteak tomato for spring/summer. Other varieties from its portfolio are Calabardina, a large-production beefsteak tomato that stands out due to its adaptability (open air, under netting and in greenhouses) and a classic in the segment, Anairis, a green-necked beefsteak tomato, which has a strong plant and high production and that has been reaping great success over the past 10 years.
In vine tomatoes, two great classics stand out: Mayoral and Ventero, both G calibres. The main attributes of Mayoral are its very high production and earliness and Ventero has an “unbeatable deep red colour”, along with quality, values for which it continues to be “number one in sales.”
For early and spring/summer plantations, Laujar has become the “indisputable leader” due to its excellent setting in high temperatures, without any splitting of its fruit, with perfect vines, bright red in colour and with short internodes. It can also be harvested as loose fruits and it is perfectly suited for ecological growing due to its wide range of resistances.
In loose, long-life tomatoes in G and GG calibres, they offer Bateyo, which has been consolidated after several campaigns as a variety with extraordinary quality, uniformity and production, obtaining the best prices for the farmers.
