SIGNIFICATION o How does this object go beyond initial interpretation? o Does it have a cultural legacy whether it is for the mass, the elite? NB Unconscious and conscious interpretation exposes cultural stereotypes

SIGNIFICATION
o How does this object go beyond initial interpretation?
When it comes to dreams, tomatoes have two meaning
-you are tented by a love story
-you have too much passionate love stories
But then there are distinctions that have to be made:
-green tomatoes= your life is too superficial
or because of your impatience, you are going to miss your chance
-if you pick tomatoes: you are going to deal with strong emotions
-if you buy tomatoes: you are going to obtain what you want
-if you grow tomatoes: unexpected and happy changes are coming
A well known expression dealing with tomatoes: 
To be as red as a tomato means to be all red Apparue dès 1690, "être rouge comme une tomate" est une référence à la couleur rouge qui teinte parfois les joues d'une personne lorsque celle-ci est sous le coup d'une émotion forte.

The other names of the tomatoes
-in France, pomme d’amour due to a red color which stands for the passion, as they thought them to have stimulating aphrodisiacal properties. It might also be due to a bad translation of the Italian “pomo d'amore” which comes from “pomme des Maures”
It also embodies summer, spain, south and warmth

o Does it have a cultural legacy whether it is for the mass, the elite?
-was not consummated by the American autochthonous
-was adopted by Mexicans who obtain from it lots of varieties
- 
The Moors who invaded Spain were spellbound by the heart-shaped vegetable that sang the love. They embarked it in their luggage to conquer the entire Mediterranean basin. Attractive, bewitching, tomato alters radically the kitchen and also seduces the French during the revolution.

-was introduced in Spain thanks to the conquest in the 16th. Spanish and Italian were the 1st to adopt it as an aliment. Italian found in the tomatoes the perfect complement for their pasta and they invented the different ways of cultivating it.
-was used in a recipe book in the 18th only. Why? Due to the smell of its stems and leaves (not really engaging) and its resemblance with toxic plants (mandragore). 
-it was cultivated as a strange object only in private and botanic garden 
-the Italians when they immigrated to the US, tried to introduce it. But the US (due to their English legacy) were very suspicious towards tomatoes. English people used to recommend to boil the tomatoes during 3 hours in order to erase their toxic part (John Gerard wrote a memoir in which he explained that the tomato was toxic). Until the end of 20th, the average American thinks that the tomato is poisonous plant. And the puritans thought it was too red and too seducing, hence it was a sin to consume it. Only the Louisianans (under the French influence) will consume it from 1810 and Jefferson, Bennet (New York Times)
-In China, it will only be adopted in the 20th even if it was introduced three centuries ago
-even the witches thought it was associated with evil.
- In 1897, soup mogul Joseph Campbell came out with condensed tomato soup, a move that set the company on the road to wealth as well as further endearing the tomato to the general public.
-now they are cultivated in lots of ways although before it was just a product without any commercial importance. Very popular.
-and now Americans obtain more of their vitamins from tomatoes than from any other vegetable.

ORIGINALITY o What makes this object unique and sets it apart from identical objects? o Is this object inviolable, or what, if anything, makes it sacrosanct

• Notions of meaning: Originality of the tomato
•  
• -       The English called it the "love apple," and English romancers presented it as a token of affection; Sir Walter Raleigh is said to have presented one to Queen Elizabeth.
• -       The early American colonists regarded the tomato as poison because it's related to the deadly nightshade plant (but so is the potato!). Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson stood on the steps of the Salem, New Jersey courthouse in 1820 and ate a tomato-and then a few more-without any adverse effects, to the town's amazement. However, another source claims that a certain M. F. Corne is the first man to eat a tomato, His fellow citizens of Newport, Rhode Island, erected a monument to him, because the tomato was considered poisonous until Mr. Corne dared to eat one.
• •                Bathing in tomato juice is an effective way to remove the smell if a skunk sprays you or a pet;
• •                Wash your hair with them after swimming in a pool in order to remove the chlorine from your hair;
• •                To tenderize meats; and
• -       To clean copper pots instead of using harsh or abrasive chemicals.
• -       Tomato juice is the official state beverage of Ohio. Arkansas' official state vegetable is the vine ripe pink tomato (of South Arkansas).
• -       The jelly-like substance around the seeds contains the highest concentration of vitamin C.
• -       A tomato importer, John Nix, decided to challenge the law after scrutinizing the Tariff Act. His case relied on the fact that tomatoes were a fruit and not vegetable, therefore, it should not be subjected to the Tariff Act. Nix's objections brought the case to the Supreme Court in 1893. Although Nix had a solid case, the Supreme Court rejected the botanical facts and continued to refer to tomatoes as a vegetable.
• -       More than 60 million tons are produced each year. This is 16 million more tons than our friend the banana, the second most popular. The third most popular are apples (36 million), then oranges (34 million), and watermelons (22 million)
• -       If you suffer from a skin disease, a tomato a day may keep the doctor away. Tomatine, tomato's principle alkaloid, heals certain fungous disorder
• -       La Tomatina is a festival that is held in the Valencian town of Buñol, in which participants throw tomatoes at each other. It is held the last Wednesday in August, during the week of festivities of Buñol. 

o How long does it take to manufacture and where is it done?

o How long does it take to manufacture and where is it done?

In 1519, Cortez discovered tomatoes growing in Montezuma's gardens and brought seeds back to Europe where they were planted as ornamental curiosities, but not eaten.

Most likely the first variety to reach Europe was yellow in color, since in Spain and Italy they were known as pomi d'oro, meaning yellow apples. Italy was the first to embrace and cultivate the tomato outside South America.

The French referred to the tomato as pommes d'amour, or love apples, as they thought them to have stimulating aphrodisiacal properties.

They were brought back from Central America by the Spanish Conquistadors, while another legend suggests that two Jesuit priests brought them to Italy from MexicoàTomatoes are sub-tropical plants and therefore require a full sun position

Approximately 130 million tons of tomatoes are produced in the world today with China being the largest producer, followed by the United States and Turkey

Tomato plants are also one of the most common home garden plants found in the U.S. There are many different varieties of tomato plants and most produce red fruit, but there are also tomato plants that produce yellow, orange, pink, purple, green and white fruit.

Heirloom tomatoes are also becoming increasingly popular among home gardeners and organic producers.

Heirloom tomatoes tend to be more disease resistant and produce very tasty, interesting fruits.

Tomatoes are the state vegetable of New Jersey, and in Arkansas, it is both the state fruit and state vegetable. In the state of Ohio, tomato juice has been the official beverage since 1965.

Tomatoes can be easily grown from seeds, but to save time and energy, most home gardeners buy tomato plants or seedlings from nurseries and garden centers

Tomato seeds can be found in garden catalogs and can also be purchased online.

Growing tomatoes is enjoyable and rewarding and doesn’t take a lot of space - they can even be grown in containers on patios or balconies.

The main thing to remember about growing tomatoes is they need a lot of sunshine and a lot of water with good drainage.

The tomato has a multitude of culinary uses and its’ high acidic content makes it very popular for canning. Joseph Campbell mass produced the first tomato soup in 1897, although the first recipe is credited to Maria Parloa for her tomato chowder in the 1872 book, The Appledore Cook Book. Today, tomato recipes number in the hundreds

Tomato sauces are used in many products including frozen foods, pasta sauces and pizza

toppings etc. A typical tomato sauce would be based on sieved or whole tomatoes,

and/or tomato paste. It would also contain water, sugar, vinegar, salt and seasoning. The

desired product viscosity would normally be achieved using a starch based thickener.

Tomato ketchup is a condiment manufactured from similar ingredients, although paste is

used rather than whole tomatoes. Premium quality ketchups with a high solids content

derive their viscosity from a combination of water retention of the fibrous strands in

the paste and the gelling effect of pectin found naturally in tomatoes

The recipe, viscosity and solids content of sauces and ketchups vary widely. Typical

process requirements are as follows:

• Mixing apparatus must be capable of dispersing powdered ingredients into water to

form an agglomerate-free product.

• If the product is made from whole peeled tomatoes, these require chopping and

pulping before addition to the mix.

• Insoluble particles in the tomatoes need to be fully dispersed and “milled” to obtain a

smooth texture and even dispersion of the pigment (carotin) to give depth of color.

• Fibrous strands in the tomatoes must be fibrillated (frayed) to raise capacity for water

retention, which increases viscosity.

• Once mixed, the product may be passed through a high pressure homogenizer or

colloid mill to obtain the required consistency.

How to Grow Tomatoes - Soil Preparation

Two or three weeks before planting, dig the soil over and incorporate as much organic matter as possible. Spread a handful or two of fish blood and bone meal over each square metre / yard as you are digging the area over. This will provide a base; long-lasting feed containing many trace elements which tomato plants require for good growth.

How to Grow Tomatoes - When to Sow Seed

Tomatoes are unable to tolerate any degree of frost, the timing for planting/sowing outside is therefore key to successfully growing tomatoes.--> Soil temperature above 10ºC. Tomato plants take roughly 7 weeks from sowing to reach the transplanting stage. They should transplanted outside one or two weeks after your last frost date, which is early, May in your area.  Hydroponic Tomatoes

Hydroponic tomatoes may look beautiful and perfect to the eye, but they are sadly lacking in flavor and contain less vitamin C. Hydroponic tomatoes are grown in greenhouses and do not get the full benefit of the sun, nor do they pull flavor from natural soil. When buying greenhouse tomatoes, take note of the attached stems and leaves for freshness. Wilted leaves and brittle stems are a dead giveaway of storage age.

No other vegetable or fruit is more widely used nor consumed than the tomato. From pizza to ketchup to sun-dried tomatoes and all in between, the tomato has an infinite number of applications on the dinner table. They can even be candied and used in cakes. Fried green tomatoes are a popular Southern dish.

QUANTITATIVE VALUE o What is the cost of production, distribution & sustainability? o How long does it take to manufacture and where is it done?

Tomato
Value:
o What is the cost of production, distribution & sustainability?
- Tomato is one of the most commonly grown fresh vegetables. 
- Tomatoes are both high yielding and labor intensive so most farmers don’t grow more than one acre 
- Tomatoes yield 650 to 800 boxes (30 lbs. each) per acre in the the central US. This equals between 19,000 and 25,000 lbs or 10 to 13 tons per acre. 
o In 1990, the tomato yield nationwide was 25,100 per acre
- Production and marketing costs can be over $4,000 per acre with an expected return of $4,000 to $8,000 per acre. 
- Efficient harvesting, handling, and marketing techniques are extremely important in the production of this highly perishable crop. 
o Labor intensive = estimated 350 hours of work for each staked acre. 
- For storage and shippin, it can be picked at the “breaker” stage of maturity, when the blossom end turns pink. 
- Post-harvest temperature management is critical to maintain quality. 
- Tomatoes may be damaged when stored below 55 degrees Fahrenheit
- For the longest shelf life a tomato should be stored from 55 to 70 degrees F
- Tomato market fluctuates with growing season -> starts high and drops as summer season progresses. 
o Plasticulture and hoop house production are techniques which increase earliness or extend the tomato season which is why they have become so popular. 
- Tomatoes are often picked unripe and then ripened with ethylene. 
- Tomatoes are often grown in greenhouses in cooler climates. 

Variety Selection
- Selection of tomato varieties include market demands, disease resistance, suitability to production systems, and regional adaptability. 

Suitability to Production Systems
- Tomatoes have growth habits ranging from determinate (bush) to indeterminate (vining). 
o Limited access, closed – sometimes overlap
o The privilege of rents
- No dominant coalition is permanent. Stability is maintained through the balance of interests in the rent-creation process.