JustASC

Loving that juicy Jersey tomato? Thank Israel.

Genesis Seeds Ltd. of Ashalim is reproducing the famed “Ramapo” F-1 Hybrid, once famous throughout New Jersey for its “balance of sweetness and acidity.” Rutgers University’s New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station distributed Ramapo seeds to 80 farms around the state, which hope to bring the strain to market by August, the Star-Ledger reports.

The state’s tomato growers had stopped growing the breed in favor of heartier strains. But the Rutgers folks found the Israel company, which initially produced four pounds of seed for $8,000, outbidding an American company that demanded a minimum order of 25 pounds of seed for $50,000.