http://www.latimes.com/news/science/...,4449608.story

"The mass-produced tomatoes we buy at the grocery store tend to taste more
like cardboard than fruit. Now researchers have discovered one reason why: a
genetic mutation, common in store-bought tomatoes, that reduces the amount
of sugar and other tasty compounds in the fruit.

For the last 70-odd years, tomato breeders have been selecting for fruits
that are uniform in color. Consumers prefer those tomatoes over ones with
splotches, and the uniformity makes it easier for producers to know when
it's time to harvest.

But the new study, published this week in Science, found that the mutation
that leads to the uniform appearance of most store-bought tomatoes has an
unintended consequence: It disrupts the production of a protein responsible
for the fruit's production of sugar...

The lesson for consumers is that tomatoes with less-uniform hues are a
better flavor bet.

"If this information gets out there, you could see people saying, 'If I see
this tomato is not uniformly ripe, that means that it's not the cardboard
junk that they've been producing for the past 30 years,'" Klee said.

"It's almost like a badge of honor.""