The new development varieties of Dutch White Cabbage from Hazera have been planted at the UK Demonstration Site near Boston, Lincolnshire, in preparation for the Variety Open Days!
The event will be held on Wednesday 9th and Thursday 10th October.
All we need now is to put our faith in nature and hope there is the right amount of sun and rain to provide the perfect conditions for a perfect display đ!
Hazera was present at the AgroExpo 2023 on Crete, Greece, from 26-28 May. Dimitris Karanikolos, Financial Administration Manager and Marcom Business Partner for the Greek subsidiary, explains the importance of this event. âSince last November, the Crete area has seen an increase in problems with the ToBRFV-virus. Thatâs why we had two main goals at the exhibition: to introduce and promote our ToBRFV-resistant varieties, and to spread information and increase awareness amongst local growers.â
âBy now, around the 30% of the tomato cultivation in Greece has been affected by ToBRFVâ, says Dimitris, further highlighting the vital importance of a strong and efficient policy against the virus. A policy that includes tomato varieties that are strong both in fruit quality and resistance. To get the main message on ToBRFV varieties across at the exhibition, Hazera created three main pillars: A fancy booth to spread awareness and display the products, meetings with small teams of agronomists to spread knowledge and a special demo field where growers could see the ToBRFV resistant varieties in the field.
Providing the right tools
âIt is very important for us to build a stronger relationship with growers, but also with local agronomists, because they go into many different greenhouses and support the cultivationâ, Dimitris says. âWe noticed that the agronomists were very happy both with the complete knowledge we provided and the products that we offered. Our tomatoes are very tasteful and cover all the needs and standards of the Greek market, and besides that they also have ToBRFV IR resistance. This, combined with the information and awareness we spread, gives both growers and agronomists the tools they need to create healthy products of great quality.â
Knowledge is key.
When asked about his highlights of the AgroExpo, Dimitris answers that he noticed visitors came to the Hazera booth with knowledge and a clear purpose. âThey knew we had a descent solution to the ToBRFV-virus, which means we successfully created awareness and knowledge about the variety with our campaigns. Another highlight was the feedback we got from growers that had already tested our varieties and told us that they are tasteful with very good shelf lifeâ.
Dimitris is very happy to hear that growers are very satisfied with the sellable products they can now produce again, as he knows this hasnât always been the case since the virus hit. âThe last 3 years we have seen a dramatic increase of ToBRFV inflation in many areas. This led to the growers changing their habits: they either stopped growing tomatoes or growing smaller quantities to spread production, alternatively replaced them with other crops. This led to a decrease in tomato production, whilst the demand increased. Especially from May to October, when our population nearly doubles due to tourism.â
Product innovator to market leader
âSo, the need for ToBRFV resistant varieties was urgentâ, Dimitris continues. âWe knew our varieties had good resistance, but we needed to ensure that our plants delivered both quality and quantity of fruits. After testing on a small scale, we moved to larger trials all over Greece last year. And with success, as growers can now produce high quality tomatoes again that are sellable in our market. Our competitors had good varieties as well, but they werenât suitable for the Greek market. Thus, we have the advantage of being the first to have that optimal balance between production and protectionâ. Because of this, Dimitris is very optimistic about staying market leader for at least the next year or two. âAnd we expect to have the seeds and added value to cover all the needs of the market.â
Follow us on our social media channels to stay connected with our Hazera people! If you have any questions left, donât hesitate to ask them via our contact page!
Want to be the first to see the next generation of the Israeli tomato and be impressed by the new variety portfolio of Hazera? Join us for a unique opportunity and meet our team for a deeper understanding of the quality, performance and potential of Hazeraâs new varieties.
The exhibition in the Arava is the perfect opportunity to get a glimpse of the future of the Israeli tomato with “Rubiconâ/ âDoria” – a new Saladette tomato variety that is suitable for picking in a cluster. The tomato is delicious, firm, has a long shelf life and excellent preservation on the plant, as well as a bright red and attractive fruit.
 |
 |
Rubicon (“Doria”): from the grower to our plate. Photograph: Ofer Hajub
In addition to “Rubicon”, Hazera- a world pioneer in the seed industry, will launch the “Yellow Whitney” – the heart tomato that made Israelis fall in love and is now available in red and yellow. The Yellow Whitney is the first yellow Midi Plum tomato of its kind – it is extremely tasty, has impressive yellow fruit, is very firm and crunchy and has a strong plant and a high yield.
Yellow Whitney. Photograph: Ofer Hajub
Come see and taste! Still young at heart, the queen of flavor, The “Maggie” tomato, is ringing in its first decade with a party! Maggie is known as a high-quality Israeli tomato, with a juicy green gel, which gives it a fine taste and rich aroma. Maggie is grown throughout the year nationwide in Israel among selected farmers only and packaged in a closed and marked package â and now with a new branding in honor of its 10-year celebration.
Maggie “the Taste” Tomato. Photograph: Ofer Hajub
At the exhibition, Hazera will launch new varieties of radishes: âWhitellaâ in white and âPurpellaâ in purple: round radishes for growing in open and closed areas, with impressive and strong colors, suitable for growing all year round with a high yield and excellent internal quality.
New radish varieties. Photograph: Hazera
Come and get an impression of a red, curly romaine lettuce: “Purple Heart“. Beyond the nutritional benefits of romaine lettuce, which is 5 times richer in vitamins than other types of lettuce, the variety “Purple Heart” is characterized as crunchy and extremely tasty and has a bright red color that penetrates deep into the leaf.
“Purple Heart”. Photograph: Hazera
Come and meet the team of Hazera at the Araba expo taking place on February 15 and 16 in Ein Hatzeva, Israel and join “Rubiconâ /âDoria” on her fresh produce journey from the field, to the retailers, and straight to her kitchen!
