Food fighting festival throwing tomatoes at eachother

La Tomatina La Tomatina in 2014 Official name La Tomatina Observed by Buñol, Valencia, Spain Date Last Wednesday in August 2018 date August 29 ( 2018-08-29 ) 2019 date August 28 ( 2019-08-28 ) 2020 date August 26 ( 2020-08-26 ) 2021 date August 25 ( 2021-08-25 ) Frequency annual

La Tomatina ( Spanish pronunciation: [la tomaˈtina]) is a festival that is held in the Valencian town of Buñol, in the East of Spain 30 kilometres (19 mi) from the Mediterranean, in which participants throw tomatoes and get involved in a tomato fight purely for entertainment purposes. Since 1945 it has been held on the last Wednesday of August, during a week of festivities in Buñol.

History [ edit ]

La Tomatina 25-08-2010

It started the last Wednesday of August in 1945 when some young people spent the time in the town square to attend the Giants and Big-Heads figures parade. The young boys decided to take part in a parade with musicians, Giants and Big-Heads figures. The energy of jovialities caused one participant's big head to fall off. The participant flew into a fit of rage, began hitting everything in his path. There was a market stall of vegetable that fell victim to the fury of the crowd. People started to pelt each other with tomatoes until the local forces ended that fruit battle.

The following year, some young people engaged in a pre-planned quarrel and brought their own tomatoes from home. Although the police broke it up, this began the early tradition. In the following years, the young boys' example had unwittingly made history.

La Tomatina was banned in the early 50s, however this did not stop the participants who were arrested. But the people protested the prohibition and the festivity was again allowed with more participants and increased passions. The festivity was again cancelled till 1957 when, as a sign of protest, the tomato burial was held. It was a demonstration in which the residents carried a coffin with a huge tomato inside. The parade was accompanied by a music band which played funeral marches. The protest was successful. La Tomatina Festival was finally permitted and became an official festival.

As a result of the report of Javier Basilio, a broadcaster from the Spanish television program called Informe Semanal, the festivity started to be known throughout the rest of Spain. Since then, the number of participants increased year after year as well as the excitement about La Tomatina Festival. In 2002, La Tomatina of Buñol was declared Festivity of International Tourist Interest by the Secretary Department of Tourism due to its success.[1]

Description [ edit ]

Preparing the "palo jabón"

Throwing tomatoes from a truck

Usually, the fight lasts for about two hours, after which the town square is covered with tomato debris.[2] Fire trucks then hose down the streets and participants often use hoses that locals provide to remove the tomatoes from their bodies. Some participants go to the “Los Peñones” pool to wash. The citric acid in the tomatoes leads to the washed surfaces in the town becoming very clean.[3][4]

Since 2013 participation in the event has been restricted to the holders of paid tickets. In 2015, it was estimated that almost 145000 kg of tomatoes were thrown.[3]

Rules of the festival [ edit ]

The city council follows a short list of instructions for the safety of the participants and the festival:[5]

Do not throw bottles or hard objects Do not tear or throw t-shirts Squash tomatoes before throwing them to avoid hurting others Keep a safe distance from trucks Stop throwing tomatoes after the second starter pistol shot Follow the directions of security staff

In other countries [ edit ]

La Tomatina Buñol has inspired similar celebrations in other parts of the world:

In popular culture [ edit ]

See also [ edit ]

References [ edit ]

Coordinates: