Lesson Plan: Florida Tomatoes in Foodservice
By Ronald S. Wolf, B.S., M.A.
Florida—not California—is the nation’s largest producer of fresh tomatoes. This lesson plan will assist in demonstrating how increased menu usage of Florida tomatoes can increase profitability.
Like the sunny Mediterranean region, Florida has the warm temperatures necessary for cultivating tomatoes for much of the year. The state’s tomato industry is believed to have started in the 1870s. Florida ships more than 1.3 billion pounds of fresh tomatoes to the United States, Canada and abroad. Almost every county in the state grows tomatoes, and Florida produces virtually all the fresh-market, field-grown tomatoes in the United States from October through June.