°Brix- Measuring Sugar in Fruit and Vegetables

Black Cherry Tomatoes

Update: A post asked what is the sweetest cherry tomato. Aha. More poking around on the internet. 

A large tomato may have a Brix reading from 2.3 to 8.2; a small tomato from 4.5 to 11.7. In a tomato challenge one bag of Sungold won out over a different bag of Sungold.   These were the F1 hybrids. What I find is that there are three varieties that show up often: Sungold (9-10), Isis Candy (8-9) and Sakura (8.8) . (‘Rosada’is the sweetest variety tested in the UK - ‘Rosada’ is a baby plum variety with a Brix rating of 10.5.- Hard to find.)

IMPORTANT TO NOTE: Many factors influence a tomato crop and the crop’s Brix level. Variety selection and crop maturity are two key factors. Environmental factors, such as moisture, fertility, sunlight, and temperature also have an influence on Brix levels. 

This article has lots of good information. 

I am always amazed at what I learn when checking a fact for a post. In checking if the Black Cherry  tomato is open-pollinated before I posted I discovered a notation of a °Brix rating (note the symbol preceding the B).

And so I begin my "but I digress" internet time. Here's the interesting information I found. It is not a game or misspelling of bricks.

Degrees Brix (symbol °Bx) is the measure of sugar content in an aqueous solution. One degree Brix is 1 gram of sucrose in 100 grams of solution and represents the strength of the solution as percentage by mass. There is a digital refractometer that takes the measurements.

Drop of juice to measure sugar content

This measurement is used in fruit juice, wine making, carbonated beverage industry, starch and the sugar industry (think produce crops-corn, tomatoes, apples, citrus, melons).

At a Yara North America internet site (which piqued my interest even more to find out about this organization.) I found this explanation.

“Sugar levels in tomatoes:

°Brix is a measure of the Total Soluble Solid (TSS) content in the tomato or tomato product. The TSS in tomatoes is mainly sugars (fructose). A tomato juice, which is assessed as having 20 ° Brix, has 200g/litre of soluble sugars.

"Tomatoes for processing require a minimum °Brix of 4.5. This compares with an acceptable range of 3.5 - 5.5 in fresh tomatoes. The TSS of processed products is measured by refractometry.

"The °Brix content of the finished tomato product is largely controlled by the processor and manufacturing process. However, some processors do pay a higher price for higher dry matter tomatoes. In general, smaller, cherry tomatoes have a higher °Brix ratio and are sweeter than larger round or common tomatoes."

Penn State Video Capture

Ohio State has a more scholarly online article and Penn State has an online video of how to use a Brix refractor.

And this, my friends, is why, as a life-long learner, I find getting on the internet sucks up so much time. (2 hrs, w/photo finds and research)

Since this is research-based information, I am signing this as

~ Carol Kagan, Master Gardener

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