For a Specialty Tomato Varietal, ‘Bomb’ Is the Flavor—and the Name

When Paul Mastronardi joined his family’s produce company full time in 1994, he didn’t like tomatoes. He set out to change that by visiting seed companies around the world, trying as many tomato varieties in development as possible. In the Netherlands, he tasted the Campari, a variety on the proverbial cutting board because of its unusual size. Retailers feared it would get lost on shelves. But the flavor was so incredible, Mastronardi insisted on introducing the variety to stores across North America. The challenge was how to create awareness about this new tomato. “At that time, there was no branding in tomatoes,” Mastronardi, the fourth-generation family CEO of Mastronardi Produce Ltd., told Adweek from the company's Ontario headquarters. “A brand sets it apart. That, as far as we know, is the first branded tomato.” Dropping tomatoes like bombs Now all Mastronardi tomatoes are named according to their flavor and appearance following a rebrand after greenhouse technology advanced enough to allow the company to produce tomatoes more efficiently. There’s Zima, Angel, Wild Wonders, Kamato, Minzano, Sprinkles and the latest: Lolli Bombs. Lolli Bombs are named for their “sweet like candy” flavor. They debuted in 2020, joining three other Bomb varieties: Flavor, Sugar and Honey. Each package image connotes its flavor, such as a lightning bolt, lollipop or honeycomb. Mastronardi first tasted the Flavor Bomb in the South of France in 2008 and was struck by its crunch and sweetness. He wanted the name to reflect those characteristics. The word "bomb" immediately came to mind when he bit into one. “It was like an explosion of flavor in your mouth,” he said. Choosing designer fruit over chocolate The unique flavor in the Bombs comes from their low acidity and high sugar content, and they're marketed as a snack. It’s the company’s fastest growing tomato segment, at a 60% increase year over year, Mastronardi said. The Food Industry Association noticed the trend, too. Consumers reported buying 35% more vegetables than pre-pandemic, and 32% of shoppers requested more vegetable snacking options, according to its Power of Produce 2021 analysis. Nicole Olynk Widmar, a professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University, compares them to designer fruit like cotton candy grapes and rosé raspberries. “People with a higher income buy a higher-quality cut of meat, but not necessarily more pounds of meat,” Olynk Widmar told Adweek. Bomb varieties include Flavor, Sugar and Honey. Designer fruit is likely marketed to the same consumers buying Misfit Market boxes, the direct-to-consumer subscription service that sells “ugly” organic produce that can’t be sold at stores because of a physical defect. Misfits recently reported a 400% increase year over year in active customer count and order volume. “The higher end branded produce is very pretty,” Olynk Widmar said. “The food from Misfits Market sustains life, but it's not pretty. … People who are concerned about sustainability also have the income and interest to buy higher end products.” Creating demand for a new food category Creating demand for produce isn’t new, either—just look at avocados. “The fact that we have such high consumption of avocados now didn’t happen by accident,” Lauren M. Scott, CMO at the Produce Marketing Association, told Adweek. She credits consistent messaging about avocados being a good fat, rich in flavor and a healthy oil for driving demand. “Now you can get avocado toast at Dunkin',” she said. Perhaps the same is true for Bomb tomatoes and Walmart. They were first introduced at high-end grocers and are now available at places like Wegmans and Walmart. A 12-ounce container of Sugar Bombs retails for $4.98 on Walmart’s website compared to $1.98 for a pint of grape tomatoes. None of the grocery stores carrying Bomb tomatoes returned a request for comment. Mastronardi wouldn’t share sales numbers, saying instead they have a “cult following” and are struggling to keep up with demand. You win some, you lose some Bomb tomatoes are a result of the research and development unit Mastronardi created following Campari’s success in the late ’90s. But Campari wasn't an immediate hit. The team almost gave up after three years. Partnerships with restaurants featuring them on menus paid off. They also held promotional contests in which the winners got a red Volkswagen Beetle or a trip to Italy. Today, the company partners with executive chefs to feature Mastronardi tomatoes on menus and blogs, and Mastronardi publishes hundreds of recipes on its website. Still, some creations can’t be successfully marketed. When the Yelo—youth, energy, life, om (think yoga)—tomato was introduced, leadership figured it could be juiced, thanks to plentiful vitamin C. “It was a fantastic tomato,” Mastronardi said. “It didn't work that great, but you got to try stuff.”