Summary
An investigation revealed that “Italian” tomato purees sold in UK and German supermarkets likely contain tomatoes grown in China’s Xinjiang province, linked to forced labor involving Uyghur and other minorities.
Testing found 17 products, many from Italian supplier Petti, containing Chinese tomatoes despite labels suggesting Italian origins.
Supermarkets disputed the findings, though some, like Lidl, admitted past use of Chinese tomatoes.
The EU is strengthening laws to address forced labor in supply chains, while critics warn the UK’s weaker regulations risk making it a “dumping ground” for such products.
that’s probably what happens. Tomatoes get at least half-processed in China, so they are less perishable and cheaper to transport and then mixed with that 1% of “true italian” tomato puree and bottled/canned somewhere in Italy so the result can be marketed as an italian product.
This is not specific to tomatoes. I remember an article doing the math for Chianti and questioning how millions of liters of wine can all come from grapes grown on a few hills in a small part of Tuscany.