The Tomato Stall – an Isle of Wight based business founded in 2007 by Paul Thomas – has agreed a deal to supply tomatoes to the Asda store at Newport.
Customers will now be able to buy tomatoes grown on the Island in the Asda store within 24 hours of them being picked, ensuring the freshest, ripest and tastiest possible tomatoes.
Previously, all the store’s tomatoes were supplied from further afield and then delivered via the main Asda depot on the Mainland.
The Asda store on the Isle of Wight opened in August 2017 and its agreement with The Tomato Stall is part of ongoing plans to make the best of locally grown produce available in the store at a competitive price.
The store now lists 2 tomato lines from The Tomato Stall, which go into store direct from the supplier both priced at £1.75 for 250g, the Newport store will stock the baby plum and on-the-vine varieties.
Kenny Farrell, Store Manager at Asda Isle of Wight, said:
“This is brilliant news for our store and brilliant news for our customers as it means they can buy tomatoes literally grown down the road from here.
Article continues below this advertisement “There is big demand for truly local produce among both visitors and residents, and we are really proud to say that we now stock what are probably Britain’s tastiest tomatoes – and are working with a local business on the Isle of Wight to make that happen.
“The Tomato Stall team has earned a great reputation because their produce is of the highest quality”.
Tomatoes have been growing in the rich and fertile Arreton Valley for over 30 years. The Island’s unique maritime climate and extra daylight hours make it the perfect place to grow tomatoes, with some of the best sunshine levels in the UK.
The Tomato Stall was founded in 2007 with a small team taking freshly picked Isle of Wight Tomatoes to a handful of farmers’ markets within London.
From humble beginnings with just a small building, a couple of vans and a handful of employees The Tomato Stall now operates across three premises, including a state of the art development kitchen, a fleet of vans and over 30 employees.
The Arreton nursery grows around 30 tomato varieties, trialling up to 200 seed types annually in search of the best flavours. 8 million kilos are produced within the nursery each year, with around 40% organically grown and 60% conventionally, or non-organic.
As well as fresh tomatoes The Tomato Stall also produces a range of artisanal products including pure tomato juices, sauces, condiments and slow roasted tomatoes using 100% vine ripened Isle of Wight Tomatoes.
Daniella Voisey, Sales Marketing Manager at The Tomato Stall, said:
“In recent years the Island’s reputation as a gastro destination has risen significantly and the Isle of Wight is fast-becoming known as the home of the best tomatoes, in much the same way as Jersey is famous for its potatoes.
“We’re really pleased that Asda is now stocking our fresh tomatoes at its store on the Isle of Wight and is able to back a local business.”
