Where are all the tomatoes?

[verdantverdure]

I'll admit it, I eat a lot of tomatoes.

Daily probably.

But where are they?

AIBU to ask you if there are tomatoes where you live?

@desperadodogface same here! No problem with tomatoes, but no peppers! We love peppers.

Oh I sort of know who KSI is because of Celebrity Gogglebox.

I've still got it

The children like a picky plate snack after school and red peppers and hoummus often features. Along with cherry tomatoes, black olives, chopped cucumber, carrot sticks.

I can't get any of it except hoummus and black olives. God knows what they'll eat instead.

Am in Spain and in the food market and two supermarkets I have visited fresh fruit and vegetables are plentiful.

It does seem to be the case that the problems have only affected the UK supply.

My husband is in Ukraine tomorrow and I'm fully expecting a photo of a brimming supermarket tomato display and a facetious comment.

I saw plenty of varieties of tomato in my local supermarket this weekend.
What I also noticed was that cucumbers and peppers were ridiculous in price, as were veg and they were very small.
There was a lack of white cabbage, turnip/swede too.

Panic buying will now set in.

I think l must live in a strange vortex of plentiful veg.

I’ve got everything, toms, white cabbage, cucumber, peppers, spinach, beetroot and asparagus. All in the bottom of my fridge.

I went and bought out Aldi's entire stock of tomatoes at the weekend. I'm waiting for the price to peak in a couple of weeks, then I'll sell them all and become rich.

I bought two packs of six tomatoes in my local Waitrose today. I didn't go to Sainsbury's so I don't know if they had any. I've noticed there hasn't been a great range for a few months, but it could also be the time of year. Around Christmas the carrots were practically rotting, but they've been much better of late.

People are saying this is Brexit. I don't doubt it plays a role in terms of where limited stocks get sent as a priority, but we were also warned last year that the weather would cause shortages. So I bought loads of tinned fruit.

People in various parts of the UK have said their local stocks are plentiful too. It seems to depend on the shop and the locality.

But to be honest that has always been the case - every week there would be something I couldn't get - either in store or on the online shop.

picky plate snack Eugh.

Thank you for reading.

What do you call it when you give your children a healthy plate of fruit and veg to pick from?

Spain and the rest of Europe have loads of tomatoes and other fresh fruit and vegetables. I asked my friends in the EU what the situation was in their countries and my FB is full of photos they have sent me of lavish displays in shops and markets. Partly, it is weather but of course brexit has made trade so much more difficult. Many EU drivers and trucking companies will no longer come here because of the conditions. We lost our frictionless trade and we are suffering.

I went into a garden/home emporium today which has a fairly expensive food hall and there were lots of vegetables including reasonable sized boxes of small vine tomatoes and cucumbers so I got a box of tomatoes as I think they were cheaper than what M&S had.

Very few available in Waitrose last night. And I’m finding that any I buy right now are tough and tasteless.

I've been reading the NFU23 coverage and the farmers say we would have British tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers at the moment if it wasn't for rising costs and staffing problems.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/empty-supermarket-shelves-tomato-shortage-uk-b2286388.html?amp

Someone was on the telly from waitrose explaining that it was a combination of
•bad weather in Spain/morocco
•border delays
•no uk produce being available due to British farmers being unable to heat
their greenhouses which is what has happened in the past

We need to start eating more fruits and vegetables that can be grown outdoors in Britain and stop the wasteful importing of fruit and veg from overseas/growing fruits in heated greenhouses. - what a waste of energy.

Spain and the rest of Europe have loads of tomatoes and other fresh fruit and vegetables

The shortage is Europewide.

Daniel Schury from Franz Schmitt & Co.:
"Shortage of Spanish fruit & vegetables in weeks 5 and 6"

www.freshplaza.com/europe/article/9502314/shortage-of-spanish-fruit-vegetables-in-weeks-5-and-6/

Yeah, but l don’t like broccoli, cabbage or sprouts.

l do like peppers and tomatoes.

You will have to pay for the privilege, they will not be so cheap as they have been in the last 20-30 years.

@Florenz yes, go for it, eat what you like

nobody is forcing you to eat tomatoes in winter

there’s cabbage and leek and beets and potatoes and lots of winter veg available

surely you don’t want to dictate what other people choose to eat though? That would be massively authoritarian 😂

If it prevents pollution than yes, we should be eating local fruits and veg not importing it from hundreds or thousands of miles away just because some people think it tastes nicer.

I don't know why the news is just blaming the weather in Morocco/Spain. I have been in Spain and France, got back yesterday, all supermarkets were awash with every type of salad veg and any veg. Surely, their shelves would be bare too? Supply issues with brexit is a large part.

Called in at two large supermarkets back in UK on way home. No peppers, tomatoes, lettuce, celery, courgettes, cabbage, brocoli, cucumber and more. Nothing. Empty shelves.
Basically there were potatoes carrots and a £2.10 organic cauliflower. That's it.

I eat a lot of veg and now have to try and track something, anything, down, not easy given I don't live close to shops