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Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?

By Lori Bongiorno

Posted Tue Jul 14, 2009 11:32am PDT

More from The Conscious Consumer blog

Technically speaking, a tomato is a fruit. That's because the scientific definition of a fruit doesn't take into account how sweet a natural plant product is or whether it's served for dinner or dessert.

A fruit is officially defined as "the fleshy or dry ripened ovary of a plant, enclosing the seed or seeds."

The simplest way to figure out if any plant product is a fruit or a veggie is to ask this question -- Does it have seeds inside? If so, it's a fruit. If not, it's a vegetable.

That makes the following items fruits, not veggies:

Tomato
Cucumber
Squash
Zucchini
Green bean
Pumpkin
Bell pepper
Avocado

What are vegetables? Everything else including roots (potatoes, carrots), bulbs (onions, garlic), leaves (lettuce, spinach), and flowers (broccoli, cauliflower).

Of course, it's not quite as simple as just following the botanical definition. Most of us think of tomatoes (and all the fruits listed above) as veggies because they we use them in salads and as part of meals. Fruits are generally considered sweet and are often used as part of dessert.

And it turns out the U.S. Supreme Court agrees with us, on tomatoes at least. In 1893, the court ruled that tomatoes are vegetables because of how they are used, as part of meals as opposed to as desserts.

No matter how you classify tomatoes, there's no doubt that they are a delicious part of any summer diet. Eating seasonal and local produce, instead of packaged food, is great for your health and the planet's.

You can find your local farmer's market at Local Harvest, or if you are willing to get your hands dirty, click here to find out how much money you can save by growing your own fruits and veggies instead of buying them at the store.

Should you spring for organic tomatoes? While it's true that organic farming is always best for the environment, it's not always necessary from a personal health standpoint. Conventional tomatoes are not all that likely to have pesticide residues on them. Check out Working Group's Dirty Dozen (most contaminated) and Clean Fifteen (least contaminated) produce lists to learn about other fruits and vegetables.

Here are five fantastic, fresh summer tomato recipes.

What are your favorite summer fruit and vegetable recipes? Please share them in the comments below.

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Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.

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Posted by shammy Sun Jul 19, 2009 12:18pm PDT
interesting...
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Posted by Erica Marie Cecelia Sun Jul 19, 2009 12:20pm PDT
The Supreme Court ruled the tomato a vegetable? ... Wow America is in bigger trouble than I thought. Sorry everyone, but scientific definitions should always win over cultural terminology...
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Posted by Wil Sun Jul 19, 2009 1:21pm PDT
Back in 1893, there must have been little else to worry about. Besides, if brought up again, they could always change their minds (think abortion rules).
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Posted by May I Sun Jul 19, 2009 3:06pm PDT
I didn't know pumpkin was a fruit, interesting?
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Posted by SS Sun Jul 19, 2009 4:39pm PDT
Once you eat the fruit, you have the seeds inside you. That makes you a fruit.
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Posted by Chicana Sun Jul 19, 2009 4:44pm PDT
uggly
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Posted by Jan Ice Sun Jul 19, 2009 4:48pm PDT
How about this for a theory? everything we think of as either a fruit or a veggie, is really just Vegetation. then it is divided into only 2 groups. it is either a fruit, or it is an herb. a fruit is as described above. an herb that we eat is, the flower, the seed, the stem, the leaves, the bulbs, or the root. there are no "vegetables"
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Posted by em Sun Jul 19, 2009 4:58pm PDT
wow this has changed my way of thinking! ahhhhh now when i eat a bell peper ill b thinking im actually eating a fruit! ah thats crazyy
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Posted by Destry Sun Jul 19, 2009 5:44pm PDT
You left of the best of the fruits the jalapeno
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Posted by cates713 Sun Jul 19, 2009 6:14pm PDT
Ok so what does that make a strawberry?
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Posted by Amanda Sun Jul 19, 2009 6:30pm PDT
I thought it was ruled a veggie b/c of taxing imported and exported produce at the time. Veggies were taxed differently then fruits. And Ive known that those items are fruits, for a long time. Hooray for science teachers.
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Posted by Janalee Sun Jul 19, 2009 6:51pm PDT
In the greater scheme of things, what big difference does it make whether it is classified fruit or vegetable? If you like it, eat it. Taste buds and tummies don't worry about terminology.
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Posted by virginia Sun Jul 19, 2009 6:52pm PDT
a fruit must ripen before eating. a vegetable can be eaten at any point of its growth. that to me is the only logical difference between the 2.
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Posted by Sean Sun Jul 19, 2009 7:31pm PDT
The simplest way to figure out if any plant product is a fruit or a veggie is to ask this question -- Does it have seeds inside? If so, it's a fruit. If not, it's a vegetable. If the above statement is true, what is a strawberry? It has its seeds on the OUTside. Think about it. Because I know the answer. Do you?
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Posted by nosleepinsolace Sun Jul 19, 2009 7:41pm PDT
ur a fruit
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