Tomato paste

[tp4tissue]

How the hell are they turning a profit on this stuff.

$6 for 7 lb can,   it's 6:1 reduction, so 42 lbs of tomato for $6,

that's 7lbs per $1 + cooking fuel $ + container $ ??

[MIGHTY CHICKEN]

Capitalism

[chyros]

1) They're all reject tomatoes that are otherwise unsellable;
2) even have if they were free it'd give them profit because cleaning waste is expensive.

[fohat.digs]

Tomato paste is expensive. Where in the heck does it cost less than a dollar a pound?

[chyros]

Tomato paste is expensive. Where in the heck does it cost less than a dollar a pound?

It's only a few cents per tin here. It's possibly the cheapest item in a supermarket.

[Findecanor]

It's especially cheap in large tins imported from low-wage countries.

I sometimes dump a tin in a plastic bucket in the freezer and hack off a chunk with a fork whenever I need a small amount.

[noisyturtle]

What about canned oysters vs fresh? Drastic price difference there.

[fohat.digs]

It's especially cheap in large tins imported from low-wage countries.

It's only a few cents per tin here.

Are you really talking about tomato paste? Tomato sauce and tomato paste are very different.

https://www.tastingtable.com/cook/national/difference-between-tomato-sauce-paste-substitute

[Findecanor]

It's especially cheap in large tins imported from low-wage countries.

Are you really talking about tomato paste? Tomato sauce and tomato paste are very different.

Yes, I was talking about large cans of tomato paste, specifically. Here in Europe, a large can of tomato paste from Eastern Europe or the Middle East can be quite cheap per volume.
Over here it is also available in small tubes and those are not nearly as cheap.

Paste is what can be frozen and scooped portions from: it is thicker and much harder than ice cream, but it's doable with a fork.
Crushed or pureed tomatoes are also cheap but its too watery and would freeze into solid blocks of ice.