Would you cut up a rotten tomato and place it into a salad that you prepared for your guests? Would you even buy rotten tomatoes? How do you know if they are rotten? The answers to these questions are very obvious. It is easy to separate the rotten tomatoes from the healthy ripe ones. The rot is caused by mold formation.

But, what if you blend the rotten tomatoes into a juice with other vegetables and seasonings? How would you know? Would you get an allergenic reaction from the mold and rot?

This is the concern that our Market Survey examines this month. The USDA-FDA uses a test called the Howard Mold Count. It is a microscopic examination of a set number of "fields" for the presence of mold cells. If there is mold in the field, it is positive for mold.

The regulations are written as % positive fields. For example, the action level for Canned Tomatoes is "Average mold count in 6 subsamples is more that 15% and the mold counts of all of the subsamples are more that 12%."

Central Hudson Lab tested 5 Brands: including one Store Brand, one imported Brand, and one Celebrity Brand Name.

Evidence of the use of rotten tomatoes in the production of one brand is so apparent that in our Newsletter we are recommending "...the consumer would be advised to write to these brands and ask for their results of mold testing before purchasing their product."

The results of the market survey, including brand names, are available in our Market Newsletter.