A Tomato Tale
August 1, 2024
Transporting the Versatile and Nutritious Tomato to Restaurants and Kitchens Across the U.S.
Simple Logistics, your trusted 3PL, specializes in transporting temperature-controlled produce like tomatoes. We have a great passion for moving tomatoes! This fruit is incredibly versatile and widely used in restaurants, so much so, that it is the most substituted item on menus worldwide! Tomatoes are featured in numerous restaurant dishes and are also widely used in American kitchens across various recipes. However, storing and transporting tomatoes requires specific expertise to maintain their quality and taste. That’s where our experts at Simple Logistics come in. We specialize in moving delicate produce in optimal conditions, ensuring it tastes great whether used in a restaurant dish or a home-cooked recipe.
Tomatoes are so versatile that they can be enjoyed as a snack, in a salad, as a condiment, in sauces, grilled, and cooked in many recipes. They also come in many shapes, sizes, and varieties such as the ones we see most often at grocery stores: Red Beefstake, Capari, Heirloom, Plum, and Cherry. But there are also many more unique varieties like Green Zebra, Speckled Roman, Kumamoto, Yellow Pear, Black Krim, Sungold, and more[i]. With so much variety available, it’s no wonder they are so widely used!
But it’s not all about versatility, the tomato is also packed with nutrients such as vitamin C, potassium, folate, and vitamin K. Consuming tomatoes, whether raw or as an ingredient, has been linked to improved skin health and a lower risk of heart disease and cancer[ii]. Tomatoes are the richest natural source of lycopene, a very powerful antioxidant associated with numerous health benefits. It’s lycopene that gives red and pink fruits their color[iii].
From restaurant menus to home kitchens, tomatoes are widely used in many recipes. “I joke with my kids that basically every meal I cook for them has tomatoes in it: pizza, hamburgers, spaghetti, tacos, nachos, BLTs, and chicken nuggets with ketchup,” said Nicole Burke in her Blog Post “15 Things You Didn’t Know About Tomatoes[iv].”
Tomatoes are one of the most widely consumed vegetable crops in the world. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), approximately 340 billion pounds (170 million tons) of fresh and processed tomatoes were produced globally in 2014. Covering a harvested area of over 12 million acres of farmland[v].
The United States is a leading global producer of fresh tomatoes, with 2.7 billion pounds grown in 2015. These tomatoes are cultivated throughout the country, with California and Florida as the top-producing states[vi].
How do these tomatoes reach restaurants and kitchens nationwide? Simple Logistics, recognized by Food Logistics as a Top 3PL Provider, plays a crucial role. Specializing in refrigerated freight, including delicate produce like tomatoes, Simple Logistics ensures each shipment is properly loaded, maintains the right temperature during transit, and reaches its destination as SIMPLE as possible.
Work with a team who will streamline and simplify your logistics. We do the complicated stuff for you. Experience the benefits of shipping with Simple! Call us today at 630-385-7400.