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This year in Portugal, tomato growers faced one of the most challenging seasons in recent memory. From extreme heat waves to waterlogging, salinity, and disease pressure, fields endured a “stress cocktail” that severely impacted yield and crop quality.
Against this backdrop, Salicrop and Sugal partnered to evaluate how Salicrop’s non-GMO seed treatment performs under real-world, high-stress conditions. The results are among the strongest we’ve seen to date — demonstrating how our technology acts not only as a yield booster, but as a risk-reduction tool for growers and processors.
A Season Defined by Stress — The Ideal Test for Resilience
The trial took place in Salvador (Vila Franca de Xira), a region hit by several severe environmental and agronomic challenges:
- Waterlogging around 40 days after direct sowing
- Soil fungi and pseudomonas attacks
- Water deficit leading to small fruits and apical rot
- Extreme heat peaks causing strong parthenocarpy
- Observable soil salinity
This combination of abiotic + biotic stress reflects exactly the scenarios where Salicrop’s seed treatment is designed to deliver value.
+57% Yield Gain: Salicrop Plots Stayed Productive While the Field Average Collapsed
Using Sugal’s commercial tomato variety H1015, the performance difference was remarkable:
- Salicrop-treated field: 69 t/ha
- Control (field average): 44 t/ha
- Absolute gain: +25 t/ha
- Relative gain: ~57% increase in yield
Even during the seedling stage, the Salicrop sector showed a stronger root system and better tolerance to soil fungi — a clear sign of enhanced early resilience.
Bottom line: in a disastrous season, Salicrop plots continued producing while the rest of the field suffered major yield loss.
Maintaining Factory Quality — Even With Higher Yields
Despite the significant increase in production, industrial quality parameters remained within Sugal’s specifications:
- Brix, pH, lycopene, and viscosity were all within required ranges
- Slightly more fruits per 10 kg (156 vs 147), indicating a modestly smaller fruit size
- Only minimal differences between treated and control plots
Translation: Salicrop delivered more raw material without compromising processing quality — a critical requirement for industrial tomato supply chains.
A 44% Reduction in Economic Loss: Turning a Bad Year Into a Manageable One
With production costs fixed at 10,500 €/ha, AG-Innov performed an economic assessment:
SalicropControlSeed treatment cost45 €/ha0 €/haProfit/Loss per ha–3,334 €–5,959 €
Even though it was a financially negative year for all growers, Salicrop:
- Reduced the grower’s loss by ~2,625 €/ha
- Lowered economic damage by ~44%
For just a 5-ha block, the grower’s loss decreased from –29,796 € to –17,121 €.
This demonstrates the core power of Salicrop’s solution: shielding growers and processors from climate-driven volatility.
What This Means for Sugal and the Industry
This collaboration reinforces several important messages for the processing tomato sector:
1. Real-world proof of resilience
Salicrop helps fields withstand stress — not only thrive in ideal conditions.
2. Better risk management
Even in the worst years, growers can significantly reduce their losses.
3. Industrial quality stays intact
Processors get consistent raw material quality despite environmental instability.
4. Outstanding ROI
A 45 € per hectare investment resulted in more than 2,600 € improvement in economic outcomes.
5. Alignment with AG-Innov’s mission
Supporting higher productivity, optimized harvests, and industrial consistency.
A Step Forward for Climate-Resilient Tomato Production
Sugal is one of the world’s leading tomato processors, and their continued commitment to innovation makes them an ideal partner for demonstrating the value of Salicrop’s technology.
This season’s results show that seed treatments for abiotic stress resilience are no longer a future concept — they are a practical, high-impact solution for today’s climate challenges.
Together, Salicrop and Sugal are paving the way for a more stable, predictable, and profitable tomato industry, even under extreme environmental pressure.
