Lycopene Content In Tomatoes Research Articles

Are the Nutritional Properties of Organic Tomatoes Altered by Single and Combined Microbial Soil Inoculants?: A Multiperspective Approach

Biologically active compounds are key-important ingredients of tomato fruits, especially those produced by organic agricultural practices. Being biologically effective soil treatments, microbial inoculants can improve soil quality through a variety of mechanisms. Their activity can influence soil properties and plant development, thereby determining the quantity and quality of the crop. However, little research was done on how these inoculants affect the nutritional quality of the tomato fruit and on the antioxidant status of the fruits. This study investigated lycopene content and total antioxidant capacity of organically grown tomato fruits (Solanum lycopersicum L. var. ‘Mobil’) using various types of single and combined bioeffector products in two growing seasons. Single inoculation contained Trichoderma harzianum, plant growth promoting Pseudomonas sp., and phosphorus-mobilizing Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strains. The combined treatment consisted of biotic Trichoderma harzianum, Pseudomonas fluorescens, and Bacillus subtilis strains with abiotic micronutrients of zinc and manganese. Sum of ranking differences method, as a multicriteria optimization method, was used to rank the treatments and identify the ones deviating the least from the reference treatment. The results showed that all microbial soil inoculants positively affected tomato lycopene content. The combined treatment showed significantly higher lycopene content than the Control in both years. We found that weather and climate conditions also greatly influence the total antioxidant capacity. Based on our results, we recommend the use of combined bioeffective treatments to improve the food quality value of tomato fruits.

A Comparative Analysis of XGBoost and Neural Network Models for Predicting Some Tomato Fruit Quality Traits from Environmental and Meteorological Data.

The tomato as a raw material for processing is globally important and is pivotal in dietary and agronomic research due to its nutritional, economic, and health significance. This study explored the potential of machine learning (ML) for predicting tomato quality, utilizing data from 48 cultivars and 28 locations in Hungary over 5 seasons. It focused on °Brix, lycopene content, and colour (a/b ratio) using extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) and artificial neural network (ANN) models. The results revealed that XGBoost consistently outperformed ANN, achieving high accuracy in predicting °Brix (R² = 0.98, RMSE = 0.07) and lycopene content (R² = 0.87, RMSE = 0.61), and excelling in colour prediction (a/b ratio) with a R² of 0.93 and RMSE of 0.03. ANN lagged behind particularly in colour prediction, showing a negative R² value of -0.35. Shapley additive explanation's (SHAP) summary plot analysis indicated that both models are effective in predicting °Brix and lycopene content in tomatoes, highlighting different aspects of the data. SHAP analysis highlighted the models' efficiency (especially in °Brix and lycopene predictions) and underscored the significant influence of cultivar choice and environmental factors like climate and soil. These findings emphasize the importance of selecting and fine-tuning the appropriate ML model for enhancing precision agriculture, underlining XGBoost's superiority in handling complex agronomic data for quality assessment.

A 15N-Tracing Study to Explore the Coupling Effects of Biochar and Nitrogen Fertilizer on Tomato Growth, Yield, Nitrogen Uptake and Utilization, and the Rhizosphere Soil Environment under Root-Divide Alternative Irrigation

To investigate the coupling effects of biochar and nitrogen fertilizer on tomato growth, nitrogen uptake and utilization (NUU), and the soil environment, a pot experiment was conducted using 15N-tracing technology from March to July 2021 and from September 2021 to January 2022. Three biochar application rates (B0, B1, and B2; 0, 3, and 6 t/hm2, respectively) and three nitrogen levels (N1, N2, and N3; 150, 300, and 450 kg/hm2, respectively) were set up. The results show that the growth, yield, rate of 15N uptake, nitrogen derived from soil (Ndfs), total nitrogen (TN), 15N utilization, and recovery rate of tomatoes were improved under biochar application, but nitrogen derived from fertilizer (Ndff) gradually decreased. A Pearson correlation analysis showed that the 15N uptake, Ndfs, TN, rhizosphere soil organic matter, soil organic carbon, and TN were significantly positively correlated with the yield and lycopene content of tomatoes. The comprehensive benefit to the tomatoes was evaluated based on combination weighting with the help of the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS). This indicates that the best planting mode was the B2N2 treatment, with a biochar rate of 6 t/hm2 and nitrogen levels of 300 kg/hm2, under the alternative partial root-zone irrigation.

Free and open-source software for object detection, size, and colour determination for use in plant phenotyping

BackgroundObject detection, size determination, and colour detection of images are tools commonly used in plant science. Key examples of this include identification of ripening stages of fruit such as tomatoes and the determination of chlorophyll content as an indicator of plant health. While methods exist for determining these important phenotypes, they often require proprietary software or require coding knowledge to adapt existing code.ResultsWe provide a set of free and open-source Python scripts that, without any adaptation, are able to perform background correction and colour correction on images using a ColourChecker chart. Further scripts identify objects, use an object of known size to calibrate for size, and extract the average colour of objects in RGB, Lab, and YUV colour spaces. We use two examples to demonstrate the use of these scripts. We show the consistency of these scripts by imaging in four different lighting conditions, and then we use two examples to show how the scripts can be used. In the first example, we estimate the lycopene content in tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) var. Tiny Tim using fruit images and an exponential model to predict lycopene content. We demonstrate that three different cameras (a DSLR camera and two separate mobile phones) are all able to model lycopene content. The models that predict lycopene or chlorophyll need to be adjusted depending on the camera used. In the second example, we estimate the chlorophyll content of basil (Ocimum basilicum) using leaf images and an exponential model to predict chlorophyll content.ConclusionA fast, cheap, non-destructive, and inexpensive method is provided for the determination of the size and colour of plant materials using a rig consisting of a lightbox, camera, and colour checker card and using free and open-source scripts that run in Python 3.8. This method accurately predicted the lycopene content in tomato fruit and the chlorophyll content in basil leaves.

Low-Cost Sensor for Lycopene Content Measurement in Tomato Based on Raspberry Pi 4.

Measuring lycopene in tomatoes is fundamental to the agrifood industry because of its health benefits. It is one of the leading quality criteria for consuming this fruit. Traditionally, the amount determination of this carotenoid is performed using the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) technique. This is a very reliable and accurate method, but it has several disadvantages, such as long analysis time, high cost, and destruction of the sample. In this sense, this work proposes a low-cost sensor that correlates the lycopene content in tomato with the color present in its epicarp. A Raspberry Pi 4 programmed with Python language was used to develop the lycopene prediction model. Various regression models were evaluated using neural networks, fuzzy logic, and linear regression. The best model was the fuzzy nonlinear regression as the RGB input, with a correlation of R2 = 0.99 and a mean error of 1.9 × 10-5. This work was able to demonstrate that it is possible to determine the lycopene content using a digital camera and a low-cost integrated system in a non-invasive way.

Isolation, Characterization and Docking Analysis of Lycopene from Solanum lycopersicum and Daucus carota

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is a berry type fruits and red carrot (Daucus carota) is a root vegetable which have essential micronutrient for the human diet. Carotenoids, polyphenols and vitamins present in tomato and red carrot act as antioxidants, anticarcinogens, and well known to promote human health and is considered as a vital functional food. Lycopene is a main carotenoid in tomatoes and red carrot, accountable for the red color of tomatoes and carrot. Lycopene can trap singlet oxygen and reduce mutagenesis. Lycopene reveals important role in a number of chronic diseases such as cancer. The present study was aimed to characterize, compare and evaluate the lycopene content in tomatoes and carrots and determine, red carrots can be an alternative source of lycopene because fresh tomatoes have a shorter shelf life than carrot. The molecular docking is presented between lycopene and Human homooxygenase enzyme-1 (HO-1) that potentiate it as a suitable antioxidant molecule.

Effects of dehydrofreezing conditions on tomato lycopene and kinetics of lycopene change in dehydrofrozen tomatoes during storage

AbstractIn the study, the change in lycopene content of tomatoes, which were frozen either fresh or after being partially dehydrated with different methods (convective, osmotic, and vacuum dehydration) during the 6‐month storage at −20°C was investigated. In the freezing process, tomatoes were frozen at 2 m/s air flow velocity by convective method and at different freezing temperatures (−30, −35, −40°C) and cryogenic method up to the thermal center temperature of the samples reaches to −20°C. It was determined that the reaction representing the lycopene change during the storage process occurred in accordance with the first‐order kinetic model. The reaction rate constants (k) determined for the lycopene change during the storage process of the tomatoes frozen by the convective method were found to be affected by freezing conditions and the results revealed that the k value decreased with reducing temperature. It was found that the half‐life time of the lycopene change reaction during the storage period increased as the freezing temperature decreased in the tomatoes frozen by the convective method. In general, it was seen that in terms of lycopene preservation of tomatoes, freezing of tomatoes with cryogenic method after being dehydrated by vacuum and osmotic treatment gave better results The lycopene loss at the end of the 6‐month storage was determined to be 46.4% in the tomatoes frozen by the cryogenic method after being dehydrated by the osmotic treatment, whereas it was 64% in the samples that were freshly frozen at −30°C.Practical applicationsDehydrofreezing is a food freezing method in which the foods are partially dehydrated and then frozen. Traditional freezing methods cause serious damage to the vegetal products. Reducing the water that will be frozen in the dehydrofreezing process allows to form ice crystals without damaging the cellular structure of vegetables. Because of the reduction of tissue damage, sensitive nutrients are less affected by process conditions. As a result; for food producers, dehydrofreezing technology seems to be more advantageous as it means less processing time, more weight product for unit volume and high quality products. In conclusion, according to the results, freezing the tomatoes by dehydrofreezing method gives better results to protect the tomato lycopene during storage.

Thermal Processing and Lycopene Content Of Tomatoes- A Public Health Perspective


 
 In this era of rising prevalence of chronic health conditions, functional properties of fruits and vegetables are of utmost emphasis. Lycopene, belonging to class of carotenoids, is one of the chief phytochemical known for being a natural colorant as well as for providing health benefits. Tomatoes are a major source of lycopene in the diet. However, tomatoes are not only used in raw but also in processed and cooked format in cuisines round the world. This necessitates the optimization of functional properties of cooked tomato products. The current study aims at describing potential health benefits of processed tomato puree through studying its lycopene content at various temperatures. A before and after 3 X 3 factorial experimental study design was used for this study. A comparison of lycopene content of tomatoes under following variants of processing was carried out: temperature (raw vs.75°C vs. 88°C) and time (5 vs.15 vs.30 minutes). Findings indicate that cooking improved the available lycopene content in tomato puree. Maximum values of lycopene were noted after treatment at 88 °C for 30 minutes (4.7 mg/100g compared to 0.20 mg/100g in raw). Optimization of lycopene content of cooked tomato puree by conscious monitoring of processing time and temperature would aid in achieving this goal.
 

Impact of Fertigation Schedule on Growth and Quality Parameters in Tomato

Nutrient availability to plants precisely can be done by combining cognitive irrigation systems with nutrient application, and proper scheduling of fertilizers is the mainstay for availability of appropriate amount of nutrients for plant growth. Based on the statement a, field experiment was carried out to evaluate the efficiency of fertigation influence on growth, physiological, quality and yield parameters of TNAU Tomato hybrid CO 4. The experiment consisting of seven treatments laid in randomized block design was replicated three times. `Fertigation was given at fortnightly interval with urea, MAP, MOP as a source of N, P& K in ten splits in 150 days. Significant differences were observed with regard to growth, physiological, quality and yield parameters. All the growth, physiological, and yield parameters were higher in tomato plants which received fertigation NPK @ 75% K + 100 % N&P. Lycopene content of tomatoes was increased to 4.73 mg 100 g-1 in fertigation NPK @ 75% K + 100 % N&P (T6). Ascorbic acid, Titratable acidity, TSS, β-carotene showed the highest value in treatment which received fertigation NPK @ 75% K + 100 % N&P.

Tomato Comprehensive Quality Evaluation and Irrigation Mode Optimization with Biogas Slurry Based on the Combined Evaluation Model

Scientific and reasonable water and fertilizer regimes positively affected crop growth, yield, fruits quality and soil environment improvement. As a liquid quick-acting organic fertilizer to substitute chemical fertilizers, biogas slurry has been widely used in agricultural production. However, the lack of research on the proper comprehensive quality evaluation model and irrigation mode under biogas slurry limits the promotion and large-scale application of biogas slurry in agricultural production. In this study, three biogas slurry (BS) ratio (1:4BS, 1:6BS, 1:8BS; volume ratio of biogas slurry to water), three irrigation levels (W1, W2, W3) and three fertilizer control treatments (CF1, CF2, CF3) were conducted in field experiments. Eleven single indexes from four type qualities (external quality, taste quality, nutrition quality, storage and transportation quality) were adopted to establish the comprehensive evaluation index system of tomato. The principal component analysis, grey correlation analysis, membership function analysis and TOPSIS analysis model (based on the combination of objective entropy method and subjective analytic hierarchy process) were used to estimate the comprehensive quality of tomato fruits. Moreover, the objective combination evaluation mode based on overall diversity was used to evaluate the results obtained from the four independent comprehensive evaluation methods. The aim is to mitigate inconsistencies of multi-attribute evaluation models. The results showed that biogas slurry application was beneficial to the accumulation of aboveground biomass under the same irrigation amount, which can effectively improve the sugar to acid ratio and lycopene content of tomato. T3 (1:4BS, W3) and T1 (1:4BS, W1) obtained the highest yield and water use efficiency (WUE), respectively. The results of Kendall consistency test and Pearson correlation coefficients showed that there were good compatibility and high consistency among the four independent comprehensive evaluation models, and the combined quality evaluation model can be performed directly. As the correlation coefficients between combined evaluation model and each of four independent methods reached 0.965, the combined evaluation model was capable of reducing the differences of four independent comprehensive evaluation model. The combined quality evaluation results showed that T2 (1:4BS, W2) recommended strongly in this study could effectively improve the yield, quality and WUE of tomato.

Infection with Tomato Mosaic Virus Reduces Lycopene Accumulation in Tomato Fruits

Despite Lycopene content in tomato germplasm (both local and exotic) was evaluated against isolates of tomato mosaic virus (ToMV), using a locally preferred hybrid i.e., Rio Grande as a control. Promising lines with resistance to ToMV were assessed by total carotenoid and lycopene content in virus-challenged tomato genotypes using spectrophotometry and RP-HPLC. Our data showed that virus infection significantly lessens the total carotenoid and lycopene content in tomato fruit. Lycopene content was significantly reduced in infected tomato compared to healthy, in locally cultivated hybrid Rio Grande. The germplasm GT-47 (CLN-2123-E) showed 60% decrease in lycopene content in infected tomato when in comparison to healthy produce. The virus infection, however, exhibited less deleterious effect on DPPH-based anti-oxidant potential of the ToMV infected tomato genotypes.

Yield, Quality and Nutrient Content of Tomato in Response to Soil Drenching of Silicic Acid

Although the role of silicon (Si) in enhancing crop performance has been proven in many field crops including rice, wheat, sugarcane and soybean, its influence on Si non-accumulator crops like tomato is very much limited. In order to evaluate the effect of silicic acid on tomato, a field experiment was conducted during summer 2018. The experiment consisted of with and without silicic acid treatments to test the efficacy of silicic acid soil drenching on yield, quality and nutrient content of tomato. The results revealed that soil drenching of silicic acid @ 4 ml L−1 at 15, 30 and 45 days after planting significantly increased the yield attributes, viz. number of fruits per plant (41.42 ± 2.77), fruit yield per plant (2.34 ± 0.05 kg) and fruit yield per hectare (86.66 ± 1.74 t) over control. Silicic acid soil drenching significantly enhanced the quality parameters in tomato. The total soluble solids (TSS) and lycopene content of tomato significantly improved with drenching of silicic acid @ 4 ml L−1 over control from 3.55 ± 0.23 to 4.23 ± 0.21 Brix and 4.65 ± 0.66 to 6.34 ± 0.22 mg 100 g−1 fruit, respectively, but significantly decreased the titratable acidity (0.45 ± 0.08 per cent) of tomato over control (0.63 ± 0.03 per cent) and enhanced major and micronutrients contents apart from Si. Thus, soil drenching of silicic acid @ 4 ml L−1 has found to be a novel way to enhance yield, quality and nutrient content of tomato.

High Lycopene Tomato Breeding Through Diallel Crossing

Tomatoes are known as one of the natural source of antioxidant, which is a compound that can inhibit and reduce oxidative cell and biomolecule damages, such as lipid, protein, and DNA. Health benefits from lycopene made this compound a tomato breeding subject for increasing its nutrient content. Tomato breeding is an environment friendly and sustainable method in agriculture biofortification methods, hence making the efforts for increasing tomato lycopene content to be possible. The aim of this research was to produce tomato hybrid with high lycopene and yield. This research was conducted in Experimental Farm, Faculty of Agriculture, Hasanuddin Univerisy, Makassar throughout June-Septermber 2020. This research was done in full diallel analysis using Griffing 1 method. Hybrid characters are highly determined with the presence of maternal effect. Lycopene has no correlation with productionCharacters correlated with lycopene are plant height, number of leaves, number of fruits per bunch, fruit length and fruit diameter, whilst productivity is correlated with number of leaves, stem diameter, and fruit diameter. Hybrids that can be used in further selection are CM, MC, MBC and KBC

Non-destructive Measurement of Lycopene Content in High Soluble Solids Stored Tomato (Solanum Lycopersicum Mill. cv Rinka 409)

High-quality fruits can be produced by controlling the environmental factors, i.e. temperature, relative humidity, carbon dioxide, and light intensity. The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) variety ‘Rinka 409’, was grown hydroponically with a high-wire system in high technology greenhouse, Ehime University, Japan. The water stress treatment using visual monitoring system was used to produce the high soluble solids tomato fruits. Moreover, a high lycopene content of tomato can be produced by controlling the storage condition. Non-destructive measurement has been known to provide a fast and accurate quality measurement of fruits and vegetables. The objectives of this study were to develop a precise position for the non-destructive measurement of the lycopene content in high soluble solids stored tomato using Vis/NIR spectroscopy and evaluate its performance. In this study, the high soluble solids of tomato fruits were grown under water stress treatment and stored after harvesting at 25°C in a cool incubator for 7 days. The tomato spectra were measured using Vis/NIR spectroscopy with the wavelength 500-1010 nm. The estimation of the lycopene content was based on the statistical model using multivariate analysis. From this study, it is concluded that the measurement of lycopene content in high soluble solids of tomato fruits after storage by using the top part of the tomato, was better than if it is compared to the side part. It was best determined using PLS analysis with Visible/Near-infrared Spectroscopy non-destructively, with the R 0.98 and RMSE 0.80.

‘도태랑’ 토마토의 이산화탄소 및 이산화염소 복합 처리에 따른 저장기간 중 품질 향상 효과

Pink-colored tomatoes have higher sugar content than the red-colored tomatoes; however, they are more prone to fruit cracking during cultivation and transportation owing to their lower firmness. Short-term high CO2 and ClO2 gas treatments were used to prevent chilling injury and reduce decay incidence during the cold storage of tomato ‘Dotaerang’ fruits (Solanum lycopersicum Mill. cv. Dotaerang). Harvested tomatoes were treated with 30% CO2, 60% CO2, and 30% CO2 combined with 10 ppm ClO2 (mixed with ambient air) for 3 h, and then stored at 4°C and 20°C. Fruit quality was assessed after storage at 4°C for 14 days and/or transferred to 20°C for 3 days (14+3 days), and 20°C for 13 days. Cold storage and CO2 treatment inhibited the softening process and delayed fruit surface color development and lycopene accumulation in tomatoes (‘Dotaerang’). A high positive correlation was found between the a* value and lycopene content of tomatoes during storage. The chilling injury index was confirmed to be reduced by cold storage and 30% CO2 treatment. In particular, the 30% CO2 combined with 10 ppm ClO2 treatment was highly effective in preventing the decay of tomatoes during long-term cold storage after harvest. These results suggest that pre-storage high CO2 and/or ClO2 treatment and low-temperature storage can effectively extend the shelf life and improve the quality of pink-colored tomato ‘Dotaerang’ fruits.

Influence of Water Stress Levels on the Yield and Lycopene Content of Tomato

Good water supply practice provides benefits such as water and energy conservation but also alters the quality of yield. These effects of irrigation on yield quantity and quality are widely researched in the case of many plants. In tomato it can affect the soluble solids content positively together with a slight reduction in yield quantity as confirmed by many studies. There are results in the literature regarding its effect on carotenoid composition and lycopene content as well, but the effect on lycopene isomers has not been revealed yet. In this study, we investigated how different water supply levels affect yield quantity and quality, focusing on lycopene components. A two-year open field irrigation experiment with a center pivot capable of variable rate irrigation was conducted on processing tomato. The water supply levels were 100%, 75%, and 50% of ETc (crop evapotranspiration) until the beginning of the ripening stage, calculated by AquaCrop compared to control without regular irrigation. The results suggested that 75% of ETc supplied till the beginning of ripening, was a balanced water supply level regarding yield quantity, soluble solids content and lycopene concentration and yields, such as higher concentration and ratio to total carotenoids. The evaluation of cis-lycopene concentration and ratio to all-trans did not show clear results in the two years.

Application of chitosan edible coating for preservation of tomato

Tomato is one of the most widely consumed fresh fruit in the world. It is extremely perishable. Edible coatings serve as the best possible alternative to reduce the post-harvest losses by delaying the ripening of tomato and increasing the shelf life without affecting the quality. Tomatoes were coated by dipping method with different concentrations of chitosan. The effect of this coating on TSS, pH, titratable acidity, shrinkage and lycopene content of tomato were investigated for a period of 30 days at ambient temperatures. Coated tomatoes were firmer, higher in titratable acidity, less decayed. Change in pH and TSS were observed to be less in coated samples than the control fruit at the end of storage. On 20th day of storage, lowest TSS value (5.1% Brix) was recorded in 2.5% chitosan and the highest TSS value (6.8% Brix) was recorded in control. The tomato in control showed a rapid deterioration from 20th day of storage. On the contrary, the coating on tomatoes delayed the ripening and extended the shelf life up to 30 days. From the results, it was concluded that 2.5% chitosan treatment resulted in better extension of the shelf life of tomato on storage when compared 0.5%, 1%, 2% chitosan coatings.

Lycopene in tomatoes and tomato products

AbstractThis article focused on the content of lycopene in fresh and dried tomatoes and tomato pomace, as well as in tomato paste at different harvest times (harvest 1 – August and harvest 2 – September). The lycopene content of tomatoes and tomato products was evaluated by using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The results showed that the highest content of lycopene was estimated in the tomato paste independent of the time of harvest (211.73 mg/100 g dm in August and 184.29 mg/100 g dm in September) and the lowest content in fresh pomace (20.45 and 16.11 mg/100 g dm in August and September, respectively). Good sources of lycopene are tomato by-products, in particularly dried tomato pomace (25.11 mg/100 g dm – harvest 1 and 19.30 mg/100 g dm – harvest 2). This study showed that tomato waste can be considered as a promising source of lycopene for the production of functional foods.

Selection of promissory crops of wild cherry-type tomatoes using physicochemical parameters and antioxidant contents

ABSTRACT Tomato is considered a fruit with a high food demand across the world due to its high antioxidant capacity. Lycopene content in tomato has been widely studied, particularly in cherry-type tomatoes which are considered a high source of lycopene for humans. The aim of this study was to analyze the differences in terms of concentration and variation of diverse physicochemical parameters of quality (acidity, vitamin C, pH, °Brix, color coordinates L*, a* and b*) and, antioxidants like ?-carotene and lycopene in 11 accessions of cherry-type tomatoes, considering the advantages of antioxidants for human health. Multicriteria analysis and other tests showed substantial differences among the accessions. IAC401 was associated with the best physicochemical characteristics of a promissory cherry-type tomato for cultivation due to its association with functional food, followed by IAC426R and IAC1624. This study allowed an innovative association of physicochemical characteristics and antioxidant contents of cherry-type tomatoes through multicriteria analyses which enable the analysis, elimination, and proposal of promising accessions for their use in future crops which will promote the best intrinsic features of tomato to be used in the studied region. In this case accessions with the highest scores offer not only optimum amounts of antioxidants and highest levels of organic acids and sugars.

Determination of Lycopene Concentration in Fresh Tomatoes by Spectrophotometry: A Collaborative Study.

Lycopene has been the object of considerable research attention recently, and the effects of the intake of lycopene, or of tomato products, have been studied in various ways. In Japan, interest in the health-promoting function of food components has increased. Developing a method to determine lycopene contents in tomato that meets the Japanese Agricultural Standard (JAS). In the proposed JAS method, the test sample consists of fresh tomatoes; a hexane-acetone mixture is utilized as the extraction solvent. A collaborative study was conducted to evaluate the interlaboratory performance of the method. Ten laboratories participated and analyzed six test materials characterized by a lycopene content between 39 and 170 mg/kg as blind duplicates. After removing statistical outliers, RSDr ranged from 1.2 to 3.0% and RSDR ranged from 2.4 to 4.2%. The HorRat values were calculated and found to be in the 0.26-0.49 range. The method for determining the lycopene content in tomato was evaluated by means of a collaborative study, and the reproducibility of this method was found to be acceptable. Intended for standardization in Japan, a method to determine lycopene content in tomato has been developed and shown to have acceptable precision in a collaborative study.