Gustarosso is one of the biggest harvesters of San Marzano tomatoes, producing 10,000 quintals per year. Watch how these iconic tomatoes are harvested, packaged, and delivered to over 60 countries
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00:00 Pomodoro San Marzano was the first tomato in the world.
00:03 It's the tomato.
00:04 But in Italy it was born with San Marzano,
00:06 before any fashion brand, like Ferrari.
00:09 The tomato we harvest today can be found in a can for the weekend.
00:14 Today we produce about 10,000 quintals of San Marzano DOP tomatoes.
00:21 DOP means "of protected origin".
00:23 Because the word "Pomodoro San Marzano" in the San Lucerino dialect
00:27 is protected by the European Union.
00:30 It can be grown, harvested, processed and transformed
00:33 and labelled only in this area.
00:36 It's halfway between Naples and Salerno.
00:39 For us it's a rite, as well as a tradition to welcome Pomodoro San Marzano.
00:43 It's a lucky charm.
00:55 It's 8 am.
00:57 We start harvesting at the first light of dawn,
01:00 until the sunset.
01:01 This goes on for the whole month of August,
01:04 and also the first week of September.
01:07 I, Paolo, represent the fourth generation of farmers.
01:11 So our cooperative has been around since the beginning of the 20th century.
01:16 To me, all farmers are uncles and grandfathers.
01:19 In fact, the slogan is "harvested by non-Italians",
01:21 the one of Giusta Rosso.
01:22 Why? Because the average age is between 70 and 94.
01:27 Why can San Marzano be grown only in this area?
01:30 There are some fundamental territorial factors.
01:34 In this valley, where the Vesuvius is,
01:36 behind me,
01:38 in its last smokes,
01:39 it has covered these soils with these substances.
01:42 The clay pile, which acts as an insulator for our Pomodoro San Marzano,
01:48 protects it and warms it up.
01:50 The second essential factor is water.
01:54 Sarno is rich in water.
01:55 The water level is really, we're talking about centimeters of soil.
01:59 Even in the middle of the city, we don't have water problems.
02:02 And the third is the Golf of Castellammare.
02:05 Every afternoon, at 2 p.m., a wind rises, bringing oil.
02:09 And the fourth is the bravery of our farmers,
02:12 because they are the only ones in the world to be able to do this type of harvesting,
02:16 totally manual.
02:17 This is how the beautiful Pomodoro San Marzano is born.
02:20 Alfonso is a partner of ours, a farmer of the Agricultural Cooperative.
02:26 Because there is love, love and solidarity for our land, for our resources.
02:30 But above all, it is important because they are the sentries of the environment for us.
02:35 The harvest starts from the bottom up,
02:38 because the first ripening takes place below,
02:41 as the plant grows slightly, slowly,
02:44 and the fruit begins to ripen.
02:46 Until it reaches a height of 1 meter, 1.20 meters,
02:49 which will be the last harvest.
02:51 The Pomodoro San Marzano, compared to other industrial tomatoes,
02:55 is a very delicate tomato, so it needs a lot of manualization.
02:59 As in the harvest that is done by hand,
03:01 the processing is also a tomato that is tend to be sweet,
03:04 where you can feel its natural acidity from the tomato.
03:09 Because here we are talking about natural seeds and not hybrid.
03:13 So I always eat it, but I tell you that every time I bite a fresh Pomodoro San Marzano,
03:18 harvested from the plant, it is an emotion, a unique feeling.
03:21 First of all, it makes me go back to my childhood because I am in the taste of a time,
03:25 but it has the feeling of nature, of freshness.
03:28 We, as Gusta Rosso, represent about forty farmers today.
03:33 The tomato is harvested, brought to the cooperative,
03:38 shipped to farmer by farmer.
03:41 The whole Apecar is weighed and unloaded in these boxes,
03:51 which can contain a maximum of 250 kg of Pomodoro San Marzano.
03:55 These labels are placed on each box,
03:59 with the number of the box, the code and traceability,
04:02 and the partner of the cooperative.
04:04 Thanks to this traceability, we can know everything about the life of the tomato in the field.
04:08 Who was that tomato, what day it was harvested,
04:11 what day it was worked and the identity card of the tomato.
04:15 They are loaded and sent to the factory to work.
04:20 This is a transforming company,
04:23 in which the product arrives very fresh and then it is worked immediately.
04:27 We recognize the San Marzano DOP as the first step from the tip that has the fruit.
04:34 The color must be a beautiful bright red.
04:38 Then, as a check, I do this too,
04:42 which must not be done with the knife, but also with the hands is fine.
04:48 The first step is to find this vein inside.
04:53 Then it is recognized that it is a San Marzano,
04:56 also because it has these white veins.
05:02 Now we take them with the elevator cart and we bring them to the washing area,
05:07 where the first washing and the second washing will take place,
05:11 all with drinking water.
05:13 Then there will be the peeling process,
05:20 which will take place with a machine with a very high steam jet,
05:24 and therefore allows us to have this peeling.
05:27 Then it will go through the various steps,
05:30 which will remove any skin residues.
05:32 Then there is the carpet where there are the gentlemen who manually peel the tomatoes.
05:37 San Marzano tomato is only approved whole and whole.
05:42 We have a machine that does a pre-selection,
05:45 but the human contact is much more effective.
05:51 This is a San Marzano beyond nature,
05:55 but it is not approved because the shape does not reflect that of the San Marzano plastic.
06:01 So it must be thrown in the juice.
06:04 This color is not suitable, it must be thrown.
06:07 This one that has the skin is not suitable,
06:11 the skin must be removed and then it can be worked.
06:16 These carrots are not suitable and go in the juice.
06:21 The tomato juice is not simply blended,
06:25 we just add a little salt, about 1%,
06:28 just to keep the stability of the tomato,
06:31 but then there is no preservative, no colorant.
06:34 We also care a lot about the envelope of the tomato.
06:39 In fact, this is one of the best boxes on the market.
06:42 It is externally painted and internally enameled.
06:45 The product will remain the best.
06:48 This format is the 3 kg, the most sold commercially,
06:53 because it is excellent as a format for pizzerias and restaurants,
06:56 but even large families would consume it easily.
06:59 Then we do this other format, which is the 500 g,
07:03 which we can use as a single portion.
07:06 After filling there is the filling,
07:08 that is, the filling with the juice, San Marzano,
07:12 and then there is the closing of the box and finally the cooking.
07:17 The cooking is a sterilization that reaches 100 g,
07:22 about an hour.
07:24 I love this job very much,
07:26 because it is based on all the love and passion of my family.
07:30 So this love was transmitted to me by birth
07:33 and I hope to cultivate it with my children.
07:36 After cooking and cooling,
07:40 packaging and then storage take place in the depot,
07:43 where they will rest for about 3-4 months
07:47 and then be labeled and delivered to the customer.
07:51 Today, Busta Rosso is present all over the world,
07:54 in over 60 nations, Hawaii, the United States, Africa,
07:58 Eastern Europe, passing through China, the Philippines.
08:02 This is the one from last year.
08:05 This year it will be certified at the end of November,
08:08 so it can be sold not before November.
08:10 Everything we saw today,
08:13 the farmers who collect the tomatoes,
08:15 Alfonso's tomatoes that we collected with him,
08:17 we will find in the United States at this address,
08:21 from Gussiamolo to Blom.
08:23 And this is what this number is for,
08:25 because we can even go back to the day you were here with us
08:28 and find that tomato you saw being collected.
08:31 This is the beauty of the Italian agri-food chain.
08:34 It is a simple tomato,
08:37 which can be used for any type of cooking in the kitchen
08:40 and any type of preparation.
08:42 And even today it is the most appreciated by all the chefs
08:45 and the best pizza chefs in the world.
08:47 You can do anything with this tomato.
08:50 There are no commas.
08:51 It is the most natural, simple and delicious tomato in the world.
08:54 It is certainly valued for our land.
08:58 We make spaghetti all'Oscarpariello,
09:00 with the products, always Busta Rosso,
09:03 fresh tomatoes, from San Marzano.
09:06 We add fresh tomatoes from San Marzano.
09:10 We are sautéing them a little with a little garlic and basil.
09:15 We brown them a little,
09:17 we bring them to a boil,
09:19 and then we add the peeled tomato, always Busta Rosso.
09:23 We let it cook a little,
09:26 for about 15 minutes.
09:29 The taste is very sweet,
09:31 which is typical of San Marzano tomatoes.
09:34 It is very sweet and intense.
09:36 It is perfect for making pasta with tomatoes,
09:41 pizza margherita.
09:43 Today we are making a fried pizza,
09:45 a classic fried pizza,
09:47 with seed oil and flour.
09:50 A super light and super hydrated dough.
09:54 We are sautéing it.
09:56 It is a classic Neapolitan recipe.
10:00 It is new, but super good.
10:03 The pizza is ready.
10:05 We used the product of Busta Rosso, always peeled.
10:09 We cooked it, blended it, and then put it on the pizza.
10:14 A little bit of buffalo mozzarella
10:16 and a few pieces of octopus
10:18 to enhance the product of our land.
10:22 I eat 365 tomatoes a year.
10:26 In this valley, time has stopped.
10:28 Sometimes I look around
10:30 and it feels like I'm watching a movie from the early 1900s.
10:34 Because seeing the families
10:36 who grow everything together
10:38 in a harmonious way,
10:41 today for me this is a huge satisfaction.
10:43 Because Marcello Busta Rosso
10:45 has given continuity to our tradition,
10:49 which is San Marzano tomatoes.
10:51 Because we want the whole world
10:54 to recognize the taste of their San Marzano tomatoes.
10:58 To be able to distinguish a San Marzano tomato
11:00 from a normal tomato.
11:03 [music fades out]
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