Tomatoes in the News

• California Farm Bureau Rains help, but could be 'too little, too late'California Farm BureauIn the southern San Joaquin Valley, which did not receive as much precipitation as Northern California, Bob Wilson, a diversified grower in Kings County, said his tomato planting is "still pretty much on schedule," with three-quarters of his crop ...
• Ag leaders optimistic despite challengesGustine Press-Standard... hay continues to be a West Side staple commodity and the diversity of row crops ranges from broccoli and cauliflower to lima beans and tomatoes. Water issues are clouding this year's prospects, however. The Central California Irrigation District is ...and more »
• ConAgra Completes Del Monte DealFood Product DesignConAgra Foods, Inc., has completed its acquisition of Toronto-based Del Monte Canada, Inc., a leading provider and marketer of packaged fruits, fruit snacks and vegetables in Canada, from an affiliate of Sun Capital Partners.ConAgra Foods Completes Acquisition of Del Monte Canada from an Affiliate of ...MarketWatch (press release)ConAgra Foods completes acquisitionCBS Newsall 19 news articles »
• Tomatoes Ripe With Powerful Health BenefitsFood Product DesignResearchers from the National Center for Food Safety & Technology, Illinois Institute of Technology and ConAgra Foods Inc. examined current research to discover the role tomato products play in health and disease risk reduction. ...Tomatoes Pack A Nutritious Punch, Study FindsBETTER Health Researchall 3 news articles »
• Local companies face cap-and-trade deadlineFresno Business JournalEmitting more than 53000 metric tons of pollutants in 2008, the processing plant of Los Gatos Tomato Products in Huron will also be looking into allowances or offsets to fulfill its share of the emissions cap. Producing around 265 million pounds of ...
• California Farmers Feel PainTruth about Trade & TechnologyFIVE POINTS, Calif.—Sharp cutbacks in water for farmers threaten to trigger renewed layoffs in a large swath of California, eating into the state's $40 billion-a-year agriculture industry and damping its nascent economic recovery.and more »
• California Farm Bureau Commentary: Farm Bureau outlines programs key to farmers, ranchersCalifornia Farm BureauBy Rayne Pegg Programs in the US Department of Agriculture budget that benefit California farmers and ranchers include those aimed at fighting specific pests, such as Asian Citrus Psyllid. Programs in the US Department of Agriculture budget that ...
• Fresno Bee Smelt Supreme Court ruling goes against farmersSan Francisco Chronicle(10-31) 15:43 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- The US Supreme Court denied an appeal today by Central California farmers who claimed the federal government lacks constitutional authority to protect the imperiled delta smelt by limiting north-to-south water ...Supreme Court denies California farmers as Delta smelt swims onWestern Farm Pressall 47 news articles »
• Western Farm Press California tomato processors to contract for 12.7 million tonsWestern Farm PressAs of January, California tomato processors reported plans to sign 2012 contracts totaling 12.7 million tons of processing tomatoes. Processors estimate the contracted production for 2012 will come from 266000 acres producing an average yield of 47.74 ...

Chicken Hunter Style

(Pollo alla Cacciatora)

• 1 ounce dried wild Italian mushrooms and 1 cup warm water or 1/2 pound fresh brown mushrooms, thinly sliced, and 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can crushed or whole tomatoes
• 1 (3 to 3 1/2 pound) frying chicken, cut into serving pieces
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 pound pancetta, cut into 4 slices and diced
• 3/4 cup dry Marsala wine or dry white wine
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Soak dried mushrooms in warm water for 20 minutes; drain. Strain and reserve liquid. Rinse mushrooms under cold running water. Squeeze to remove as much moisture as possible; set aside. If using fresh mushrooms, sauté in 2 tablespoons oil until golden; set aside.

Press tomatoes through food mill or sieve and discard seeds.

Wash chicken pieces and dry thoroughly. Spread flour on aluminum foil. Coat chicken pieces with flour. Heat oil in large heavy heatproof casserole. Add garlic and chicken. Brown chicken on all sides over medium heat. Discard garlic. Remove chicken from casserole. Add onion to casserole and sauté until pale yellow. Add pancetta and sauté a few minutes longer.

Return chicken to casserole. Increase heat and pour wine over. Cook until wine is reduced by half. Add tomato pulp. Add dried mushrooms with reserved liquid. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer 30 to 40 minutes or until chicken is tender. Turn and baste chicken a few times while cooking. Add fresh mushrooms to casserole during last 5 minutes of cooking. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

Serves 4

Adapted from Biba's Northern Italian Cooking. 2002. By Biba Caggiano, HP Books