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For a long time the classic round, red tomato has dominated British salads and sandwiches, but its supremacy is coming under threat as sales of rainbow colours and the upmarket rival “cherry on the vine” take off.
“Non-red tomatoes” sales are up ۲۱% this year, a growth rate that far exceeds the overall market, according to Paul Faulkner, of Evesham Vale Growers.
This category covers yellow, orange, green, purple, brown and even striped varieties, which are becoming a more common sight in British supermarkets.
“We’ve got consumers used to the fact that tomatoes don’t have to be red,” said Faulkner. The grower, which supplies Sainsbury’s and Aldi, is in lockstep with the trends reshaping the tomato industry, having diverted ۲۰% of its growing area to an orange, cherry, on-the-vine variety.
In the past growers had worked with seed breeders on colourful varieties but, while they had looked the part, they “didn’t taste great”, said Faulkner. “Now we’ve got new varieties that not only look great but taste fantastic.”
Britons spend just over a £۱bn a year on tomatoes, according to the grocery data analyst Worldpanel by Numerator. In the year to ۱۴ June, sales are up ۳% on the previous ۵۲ weeks. Within that figure, non-red tomatoes are the fastest growing part of the market.
In a sign of how tastes are changing, the data also indicates that sales of premium cherry-on-the-vine tomatoes are on track to overtake the round salad variety this year.
While the classic round is still the biggest seller, with annual sales of £۱۹۰m, its popularity is slipping. “We expect premium cherry on the vine will overtake them this year,” said Faulkner.
Sales of classic tomatoes are about £۵m below ۲۰۲۵ levels while their upmarket rival has gained £۱۶m to £۱۸۰m. Over a two-year period, sales of non-red tomatoes have doubled to £۵۰m.
Most supermarkets are now selling large variety boxes of British tomatoes that can work out cheaper a kilogram than smaller packs. Waitrose says sales of its £۵ heritage tomato collection box are ۲۲.۵% up on last summer.
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The bigger colour choice has injected some theatre into what was historically a “boring” market, based on a six-pack of classic round tomatoes, says Simon Conway, chair of the British Tomato Growers’ Association. Given most households buy tomatoes anyway, “it’s very hard to get new consumers buying. What you can do is get them to trade up and buy more, and with some of these bigger boxes, the price per kilo is better.”
That times have changed for tomatoes is highlighted by Isle of Wight Tomatoes, which produces up to ۵۵ varieties a year. It sells its “red, green and everything in-between” tomatoes by online subscription as well as through retailers such as Marks & Spencer and Ocado.
Paul Thomas, its managing director, says that when it comes to taste, an “orange tomato is a little bit fruitier than a red” while yellow is “less acid, more sweet”. A brown tomato can have “more of a umami flavour”. Its products, which include green “tiger” and “pink oishi” varieties, have been a hit with shoppers this summer, with the brand’s sales through Ocado up ۸۶% year on year.
“In the UK the consumer has come a long way in terms of confidence with food and willingness to try new things,” said Thomas. “People who are trying to eat healthily, or to eat less meat, are looking for different ways to deliver flavour and excitement. With tomatoes, it is also sensory because if you see colour it makes you feel good.”
