In recent years, small tomatoes have been consistently popular in the Chinese market due to their broad appeal, convenience, moderate pricing, and suitability for wholesale and catering industries. Beyond the traditional red, yellow, and green varieties, new colors, including black, white, and orange, have been introduced this year and have been well-received.

“Since small orange tomatoes gained popularity in the market earlier this year, we recognized that multi-colored small tomatoes could bring joy to consumers while offering high edible value. This inspired us to launch a seven-color small tomato fruit box. After its release, the product was a huge success, with peak orders exceeding 20,000 boxes per day,” said Mr. Li Jianting, head of Shandong Jianan Agriculture.

“Due to varying planting preferences across regions, sourcing a complete set of seven colors currently requires collaboration with multiple production areas, where we also conduct quality screening. Seasonal factors sometimes lead to shortages of certain colors. To address this, we’ve begun cultivating multi-colored small tomatoes in Inner Mongolia to fill the gaps. By July this year, we expect year-round availability without color shortages,” he added.

According to Mr. Li, limited production currently restricts sales primarily to Shanghai and East China. “Ahead of the Dragon Boat Festival and Children’s Day holidays, market demand for this product has surged, and sales have been strong.”

Explaining the product’s popularity, Li noted: “A key consumption trend this year is the significant rise in consumers’ quality expectations. For instance, while small tomatoes with a Brix level of 7 were acceptable last year, the standard has now increased to at least 9. In terms of pricing, while ordinary small tomatoes sell for ￥1–￥2 (US$0.14–US$0.28) per kilogram, high-sugar varieties command ￥5 (US$0.70) per kilogram, and specialty varieties can reach ￥8 (US$1.12) per kilogram. This demonstrates that differentiated, scarce, and high-quality products can still achieve premium pricing. In today’s market, only distinctive, great-tasting, and consistently high-quality products can succeed.”

Jianan Agriculture’s product line includes small tomatoes, vine tomatoes, strawberry tomatoes, and big taste tomatoes, all produced through contract farming. Their vine tomatoes are also exported to Russia, Mongolia, and other regions.