Cento D.O.P. VS Certified San Marzano

[matermark]

No. I think what you meant to say is "the tomatoes didnt meet specs even though they are certified". And you are welcome for the correction.

BTW...I opened a can of these certified cento's tonight to make pizza sauce and i didnt notice any difference between the D.O.P. label. Still too acidic for my taste.Luckily my recipe calls for a bit of sugar so it balanced out a bit. But as i said i am a chili head, and chili in my opnion should never taste sweet, or acidic, so cento brand will never stock my pantry ever again.

The tomatoes didn't meet specs? A chili head or a chile head? I don't have any problems with any of their products yet--I haven't bought the CERTIFIED version yet but the San Marzanos for $1.69 I thought were great. Try the 35oz cans. Try the Anna #87 Cavatappi pasta with it or a can or 2 of Cheddar soup too, in a smoker if you have one, with some pecan or hickory wood.

I didn't know they had Wegmans near Philly. I know there was one in Wilkes-Barre, and Redners in Luzerne County too. Wegmans is from the Buffalo-Rochester area.

[FeCheF]

The tomatoes didn't meet specs? A chili head or a chile head? I don't have any problems with any of their products yet--I haven't bought the CERTIFIED version yet but the San Marzanos for $1.69 I thought were great. Try the 35oz cans. Try the Anna #87 Cavatappi pasta with it or a can or 2 of Cheddar soup too, in a smoker if you have one, with some pecan or hickory wood.

I didn't know they had Wegmans near Philly. I know there was one in Wilkes-Barre, and Redners in Luzerne County too. Wegmans is from the Buffalo-Rochester area.

Yes the tomatoes didnt live up to the true "sweet flavor" of San Marzano tomatoes.In fact they tasted very acidic, and bitter.And yes I am a Chili head, meaning i love to make chili. Chile? Im from the US, not South America. And i said i was 30 minutes from Philly. I am between Allentown and Philadelphia. Which is 30 minutes either direction.And yes there is wegmans, and redners in my area.

[dellavecchia]

Here is the email I got from Cento, which is what was essentially reported earlier:

Dear Mr. Della Vecchia:

Cento Certified San Marzano Tomatoes have been, and continue to be grown and
produced in the Sarnese Nocerino area of Italy.  They continue to follow the
same high quality and standards that Cento has always stood by.

After our new crop was approved and certified authentic, a new organization
was appointed to govern our labels.  After months of delay in their
response, we were notified that our label design no longer conformed to
their requirements.  Due to the unreasonable nature of the new label
requirements, Cento has decided to remove the DOP seals from our label;
however, they remain certified San Marzano tomatoes and continue to follow
the high quality standards.

We assure you, in no way has this product's certifications and quality
standards changed.  You are paying for the same certified, high quality
product, sure to beat any other certified San Marzano tomato brand.  In
appreciation of your continued patronage, we are going to mail you a supply
of cents-off coupons and a complimentary copy of our recipe booklet.  If
interested, please email us your complete home mailing address.

Thank you for supporting Cento Fine Foods!

Sincerely,

Michael A. Capri
Consumer Relations

Also, I found a jar of "real" SM's (they are listed on the consortium website). They tasted nearly identical to the Terra Amore e Fantasia, and very close to the Miracolo (both from Sabatino Abagnale). They were slightly, slightly more sweet than Cento, but more mineral in character. What they are not, is like candy, as was portrayed in the long post by the distributor earlier in the thread.

This jar cost more than I care to admit I paid for it. So it will never be gracing my table again. It will be interesting to compare it to the agrigenus, which just got delivered (and only cost $5 per can).

John

[Tscarborough]

You paid for the wrapping on those.  On that note, I have been trying the various glassed San Marzano products and they are better than canned.

[dellavecchia]

On that note, I have been trying the various glassed San Marzano products and they are better than canned.

I fully agree. No metallic taste, and the added benefit of no BPA - which is really getting me worried since we eat alot of canned tomatoes.

John

[matermark]

That e-mail was pretty much the form letter sent out thru PR. I asked more questions, specifically if the 35oz "Product of Italy" whole peeled tomatoes where the same thing and that many preferred them, and got a 2nd message:

Regarding the 35 ounce “Product of Italy,” all of our tomatoes are from the Campagnia region of Italy, however with the San Marzano Certified tomatoes, the cultivation and production is supervised by a third party agency.

To clarify your question, we have already incurred the cost on this year’s production, however, the fuss is over the labeling.  We were forced to change our trade dress, which we invested significant amounts of time and money on with national advertising campaigns and billboards.

I THINK the last paragraph may have been in reply to my question "...Some think Cento just abbandoned the program and are selling the same tomatoes without the fuss & fees. Are the plain labeled cans a newer version or crop?"

I often watch the cookingchannel as well as the food network (YES, the more the merrier!) and have seen the Cento TV ads quite often.

As for my local store, I didn't see any DOP versions left, just the CERTIFIED. Even most of the $1.69 "Product of Italy" Italian whole peeled tomatoes were scarfed up; I found 3 so I bought them. Also pretty good I thought were the "CHEF'S CUT" for $1.29 which are supposed to be strips of tomatoes. Or you could try the 14-14.5oz "Product of Italy" [unadvertised] San Marzanos for $1.19; these are enough for 1 large pizza.


Hope this helps.

[matermark]

I fully agree. No metallic taste, and the added benefit of no BPA - which is really getting me worried since we eat alot of canned tomatoes.

John

Sorry, I haven't been following BPA but found this:

Am I exposed to BPA from can linings?

Government and industry researchers have reported that bisphenol A (BPA) is generally not detected in canned beverages and only extremely low levels (generally less than 37 parts per billion) of BPA have been reported to migrate into some canned foods. At these levels, a consumer would have to ingest more than 500 pounds of canned food and beverages every day for an entire lifetime to exceed the safe level of BPA set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Consequently, human exposure to BPA from can coatings is minimal and poses no known health risk.

Can coatings continue to be recognized as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.K. Food Standards Agency, the EU Scientific Committee on Food and other government bodies worldwide.

[FeCheF]

I thought were the "CHEF'S CUT" for $1.29 which are supposed to be strips of tomatoes. Or you could try the 14-14.5oz "Product of Italy" [unadvertised] San Marzanos for $1.19; these are enough for 1 large pizza.


Hope this helps.

I bought a few "CHEFS CUT" on sale when they were 10 for $10 and i thought they were very sour tasting with alot of acidity.

[matermark]

I found this post on chowhound, I found it interesting:

My favorite brand is Cento. To get the DOP, I have to drive 100 miles. However, my local market carries Cento brand tomatoes, not marked DOP. Awhile ago I emailed Cento to ask if these were also San Marzano tomatoes, because they tasted like it. Here is their reply:

"Our imported Italian tomatoes are San Marzano. Cento 35 oz. Italian Peeled Tomatoes and Cento 28 oz. San Marzano D.O.P. Certified are both San Marzano. You will find that the 28 oz. D.O.P. Certified are more costly than the 35 oz. tomatoes. While they are both varieties are from the San Marzano region, the 28 oz. D.O.P. certified simply guarantees the point of origin and that the tomatoes were grown in compliance with Italian laws. A certification fee is factored in to the cost of the D.O.P. certified."

Permalink | Reply
 By runwestierun on Feb 17, 2010 02:27PM
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/351272#5409882

[chickenparm]

I found this post on chowhound, I found it interesting:

My favorite brand is Cento. To get the DOP, I have to drive 100 miles. However, my local market carries Cento brand tomatoes, not marked DOP. Awhile ago I emailed Cento to ask if these were also San Marzano tomatoes, because they tasted like it. Here is their reply:

"Our imported Italian tomatoes are San Marzano. Cento 35 oz. Italian Peeled Tomatoes and Cento 28 oz. San Marzano D.O.P. Certified are both San Marzano. You will find that the 28 oz. D.O.P. Certified are more costly than the 35 oz. tomatoes. While they are both varieties are from the San Marzano region, the 28 oz. D.O.P. certified simply guarantees the point of origin and that the tomatoes were grown in compliance with Italian laws. A certification fee is factored in to the cost of the D.O.P. certified."

Permalink | Reply
 By runwestierun on Feb 17, 2010 02:27PM
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/351272#5409882

What about the other Cento cans? I have a Cento Tomato Puree in the can,says nothing about being imported or SM in any form,is this also made from SM tomatoes?Its kinda confusing...

[matermark]

What about the other Cento cans? I have a Cento Tomato Puree in the can,says nothing about being imported or SM in any form,is this also made from SM tomatoes?Its kinda confusing...

I think it refers specifically to the 35oz "Product of Italy" Italian Whole Peeled Tomatoes that I have mentioned earlier here. This can across the front I believe says "ITALIAN", not "Italian Style" or anything similar. The can must say on it "Product of Italy."

I don't buy puree, I make my own heirloom puree, so didn't pay attention to what the can said on the puree. I think any that have the picture on the left of plum tomatoes saying "Never from concentrate" may be made in USA.

[chickenparm]

Does Cento sell their own version of canned tomatoes? I did notice the email reply focused on their IMPORTED stuff,but said nothing if Cento themselves had their own version,which may have been what the person was asking about in the first place.

To me it sounded like someone was buying regular cento canned tomatoes,thought it tasted the same as SM or DOP,and the reply was saying those are SM inside?

[matermark]

Does Cento sell their own version of canned tomatoes? I did notice the email reply focused on their IMPORTED stuff,but said nothing if Cento themselves had their own version,which may have been what the person was asking about in the first place.

To me it sounded like someone was buying regular cento canned tomatoes,thought it tasted the same as SM or DOP,and the reply was saying those are SM inside?

He was talking about the 35oz can which says "ITALIAN" and "Product of Italy" and does not mention SM on it I don't believe.

They also have have All-in-one (must be crushed, pieces and puree or juice all in one can), crushed, petite diced, Italian (14oz & 35oz SM's whole peeled, PLUS whole peeled Italian cherry tomatoes), CERTIFIED/DOP CERTIFIED as what this thread started out as, as well as 2 organic cans (I think whole peeled SM, and chunky style crushed.) They may have others that my local store doesn't carry too. They have something in a tall jar too. At the link below, scroll down to the sauce section to SAN MARZANO PASSATA DICED TOMATOES 24oz to see the jar sauce. Scroll down further to see the tomato line available.

http://www.cento.com/product/centoproducts.html

P.S. You can buy from Cento online at this link, including some of their sister brands:

http://www.fineproductsinternational.com/tomatoes.htm

[matermark]

Here's another question:

What does the green banner on the round emblem on the left of this can of Italian "Style" tomatoes say?

I thought the Italian STYLE are California plum tomatoes...

These were from the last link I posted above.

[scott r]

those italian style ones are a big fake out.  Yes, california tomatoes.    actually, I have been getting lots of sub par tinny cans of my old favorite lately, the ones that say Italian tomatoes product of italy with the ROA on top.  They are still nice and thick, but the flavor seems to be lacking.    Been rockin the organic meur glen (sp?), but they are packed in such thin water.   Its a shame you get so little useful tomato out of the can, but they sure do taste nice and clean and fresh.   I also just like that they are an american grown tomato.   Still, for me nothing grown in italy beats those miracle of san genarros, but I am looking forward to trying some jarred san marzanos soon.  Usually I can only find the fully pureed pasatta in glass where I shop, but maybe its time to do some digging for some jarred whole san marzanos.  

[matermark]

those italian style ones are a big fake out.  Yes, california tomatoes.    actually, I have been getting lots of sub par tinny cans of my old favorite lately, the ones that say Italian tomatoes (not italian style, which always suck).    

What does the green label say? The green bar on the LEFT?

[scott r]

I think something like plum shaped san marzano variety.   

[matermark]

So it's a San Marzano? That's what it looks like it says, no?

How about a Cento sister brand, NO preservative, NO SALT, SAN MARZANO for $1.89??

http://www.fineproductsinternational.com/70796-44430.htm

[tavara6]

Clearly a scam. I was buying Cento DOP Certified  and then they were off the shelves of 3 different stores for months, only to be replaced with Certified. The seal and DOP desigination ensures that only products genuinely originating in that region are allowed in commerce as such. So who certified? Cento?

[andreguidon]

if any of us want original san marzanos the can has to have an IS.ME.CERT logo.