A picture of tomatoes. A international standard for tomatoes has been adopted.
 
    An international standard for tomatoes has been adopted, ending about seven years of intense debates between countries on what qualifies as a proper tomato.

    According to the new standard, tomatoes may come in one of four varieties: round, ribbed, oblong or elongated, or cherry tomatoes and cocktail tomatoes.

    They must be whole, clean, free from foreign smell, free of pests and fresh in appearance.

    "In the case of trusses of tomatoes, the stalks must be fresh, healthy, clean and free of all leaves and other visible foreign matter," according to the so-called Codex standard.

    A commission called Codex Alimentarius was (R)created in 1963 by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) and the World Health Organisation to come up with food standards and guidelines on food products.

    There are international standards for all kinds of food produce ranging from edam cheese to bananas to fish fillets.

    They facilitate trade, as they provide a common interpretation of what constitutes a sound product to importing and exporting countries.

    Tom Heilandt, who is a senior food standards adviser at the FAO explained that one such international standard was needed for tomatoes, in order to protect importing countries.

    "Many developing countries in particular said that they needed this standard so that they ensure that they would get the right quality of products that they ordered," he said.

    什么樣的西紅柿才算合格呢？在長達七年的激烈爭論后，有關西紅柿的一套國際標準終于得以確立。

    根據新標準，合格西紅柿包括四大品種，即圓形、傘拱形、橢圓形或淚滴形西紅柿（即“圣女果”），以及雞尾酒西紅柿。

    所有種類的西紅柿外觀必須完好、干凈、新鮮，且無異味和蟲眼。

    所謂的法典標準規定：“如果是一串西紅柿，其莖干必須新鮮、干凈、健康、不帶葉及其它可見異物。”

    食品法典委員會由聯合國糧農組織和世界衛生組織于1963年共同創立，其主要職責是研究和制定食品標準及指南。

    目前，包括紅波奶酪、香蕉和魚排在內的各類食品都已有國際標準。

    這些國際標準為食品進出口國家提供了一套合格產品的統一標準，方便了食品貿易。

    糧農組織食品標準高級顧問湯姆•黑蘭德說，西紅柿也需要這樣一套國際標準，這樣可以保護那些西紅柿進口國。

    他說：“尤其是很多發展中國家表示，他們需要這樣一套標準來確保他們所訂購產品的質量。”

    Vocabulary:  

    cherry tomato:俗稱“圣女果”