Rachel Laudan was quoted in Culinary Luddites: "Eating fresh, natural food was regarded with suspicion verging on horror, something to which only the uncivilized, the poor and the starving resorted". But that ignores gourmets.

In his new book, “Pomodoro! A History of the Tomato in Italy,” Gentilcore traces the tomato from its origins in the New World, where it was domesticated by the Maya, then cultivated by the Aztecs. It likely entered Europe via Spain, after conquistador Hernan Cortes’s conquest of Mexico. When it arrived on the scene in Italy, it was strictly a curiosity for those who studied plants — not something anyone faint of heart would consider eating. In 1628, Paduan physician Giovanni Domenico Sala called tomatoes “strange and horrible things” in a discussion that included the consumption of locusts, crickets, and worms. When people ate tomatoes, it was as a novelty. “People were curious about new foods, the way gourmets are today with new combinations and new uses of high technology in preparation,” Gentilcore said. Yesterday’s tomato is today’s molecular gastronomy. . .

You can’t imagine Italian food without it. And yet most of these dishes, such as pasta al pomodoro, are fairly recent — from the 1870s or ’80s. Italian immigrants arriving in New York City or Boston were the first generation to eat these dishes as daily things. Making a rich meat sauce with maybe the addition of tomato paste, that Sunday gravy style, is something that happens only in the 20th century. . .

The tomato was associated with the eggplant, which was regarded with suspicion. It’s a vine. Anything that grows along the ground was seen as a plant of low status, something you only give to peasants. . .

The medical advice was to stay away from these things. In some cases, it made them all the more attractive. Truffles, for example. For the elites who could afford them, that was part of their attraction. Practically all fruits and vegetables were considered harmful. Melons in particular were really dangerous. The only way to eat something cold and moist like melon was to wrap it in prosciutto or ham, which is hot and dry. It was a way of balancing the food. . .

Tomatoes took off in Italy because they became an industry, mostly for export. Italians were too poor to buy such things. Most of the country’s processed tomatoes are exported. In Italy, up until the 1950s, there was a large part of the country, even where they produce tomatoes, where they wouldn’t eat the stuff.

You can't sell tomatoes at our local farmer's market since everyone grows them at home. At best you can trade your tomatoes for a different variety, but everyone is trying to get rid of their excess.