Frequently Asked Questions
What does Red Tomato do in a nutshell? What are your sources of funding? Are Red Tomato products organic? What does Red Tomato mean by regional? Isn't local important? What exactly is the dignity deal? What does Red Tomato do in a nutshell? Red Tomato coordinates marketing, sales, and wholesale logistics for a network of over 40 family farms in the Northeast. We help farmers compete in the wholesale market by establishing fair prices, working with scientists to develop sustainable growing standards, and developing innovative marketing that connect consumers with the people who grow their food.
Red Tomato was born out of the desire to figure how to sell local produce fairly on a wholesale scale. Our non-profit status gives us the resources to do this in the context of a very competitive, low-margin, commodity-focused produce industry. Creating solutions requires us to innovate, create, react, learn, and collaborate with our colleagues in the sustainable food movement. This is pioneering work that goes against the current of mainstream produce wholesaling. Our model involves a lot of risk and experimentation, and pushing against entrenched systems. It is a creative laboratory to test and innovate. We operate in an arena where our non-traditional, values-based model requires a non-traditional organization and non-traditional support.
What are your sources of funding? Currently, 60% of our funding comes from government and foundation grants and individual donations. 30% is trade-based income, our fees for buying and selling produce (which average around 10% per transaction). The remaining 10% of our funding is income from our consulting efforts.
Are Red Tomato products organic? Some of the growers in the Red Tomato network are certified organic. Most use a combination of advanced IPM (Integrated Pest Management) and other methods to balance ecological, conservation and product quality goals. It is very difficult to grow wholesale fruit organically in the Northeast, particularly tree fruit, because of weather and pest pressures that are specific to the region. For other crops organic can work well. We see organic, IPM and other ecological methods as complementary approaches to responsible stewardship.
Integrated Pest Management requires growers to use a wide range of natural techniques to control pests with minimum chemical applications. The IPM toolbox contains many tested common sense practices, like targeted mowing and pruning, as well as advanced scientific concepts like beneficial insects and mating disruption. Because there is no national certification for IPM, Red Tomato, has partnered with the IPM Institute of America, science advisors, and many generous funders to create protocol and third-party IPM certification standards for apples and stone fruit. We are working to expand this approach to other crops in the region.
What does Red Tomato mean by regional? Isn't local important? Red Tomato works with growers across the Northeast, in New England, New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. By developing a regional food system we can both increase supply and extend the season of product availability for our customers. Cool climate crops, like lettuces, start early in the southern tier (NY,NJ, PA) and move north as the season continues. It's good for both farmers and eaters if we can develop gap-free local programs for each of our products by utilizing growers from across the region and its many microclimates.
What exactly is the dignity deal? A key piece of the Red Tomato mission is to develop a supply chain that offers fair returns to growers. For any given product, Red Tomato staff start the pre-season conversation with the grower to establish three prices: last year's average, this year's ideal price, and the farmers' personal price floor-the lowest price the farmer can accept without losing both money and dignity. With this information, trade staff are able to negotiate prices with customers with the farm economics in mind. Other key components of the dignity deal include: feedback loops between buyers, customers, and farmers, transparency, shared risk, and farmer participation in negotiations.
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Good food means; quality rules, family farmers thrive, earth is in harmony, health flourishes and fair trade is fundamental. 
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Red Tomato has one foot in the mission-driven non-profit world of sustainable agriculture, and one in the dynamic market. 
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Did you know there are over 2000 varieties of apples produced in the US, some that have been around for centuries?
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