Sainsbury’s is selling ripened tomatoes with a twist - they are green.
The Delizia tomato has a green top and a red bottom with green-coloured flesh and an unusual shape that separates it from its red and round cousins, the retailer said.
Clancy McMahon, Sainsbury’s tomato buyer said: “Delizia is a very different tomato. We are all used to eating tomatoes when red and juicy, but this variety is best eaten when the flesh is green and the fruit does not look fully ripe.
“They are also unlike most tomatoes in taste. Delizia are unusually sweet and almost smoky on the palette,” she added.
The tomato is grown in Sicily, where it is considered a delicacy. The retailer said growing trials had been conducted elsewhere in Europe, but the fruit developed best in Sicily.
McMahon said the crop is being grown exclusively for Sainsbury’s and has a short season, lasting from the beginning of April through to May.
The tomato will be in-store until mid May under the Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference range, priced £1.99 for a pack of 4 or 5.
