On 4 Nov 2003 13:57:24 -0800, (Doctoroe) wrote:

Just bought some bright red tomatoes at the grocery, since we are out
of the fresh ones. These are hard as can be. Obviously they are
green. How do they make em red when they are obviously not ripe? The
first one we tried had about as much taste as sawdust. Now have the
other two sitting in the window sill, but they are still hard as
softballs.

I'm not so sure year-'round imported supplies of produce are a good
idea. (Personal Rant) I argued my position of locally-grown produce
in season with someone who, next day, served "fresh" cherry tomatoes
in a Chirstmas (N. Hemisphere) salad that had approximately the taste
of cotton balls. I guess she didn't understand my point. A
"traditional" Christmas dinner includes late fall and root veg, nuts,
apples, sturdy greens, preserves, sweets, etc., not "tossed" salads.

I think that Xmas/tomato conversation may have started with a
discussion of agribusiness. Tomatoes, as we know, tend to grow and
ripen on a fairly random schedule. Which means a *lot* of labor to
harvest at or just slightly before peak. Over and over for the same
plants. This is not friendly for large mechanized food operations, so
a lot of effort has gone into producing plants that will "deliver" a
reasonably reliable crop that can be harvested mechanically at one
time. Treating with ethylene gas will turn the green 'uns red, and
tomatoes *do* ripen off the vine, 'though not nearly so tastily.
Agricultural colleges don't get grants to produce good taste --
funding is for sturdy, packable, *efficient* fruit.