Maddison Baggs, Harli Spears, Kimbra Baker
La Tomatina
La Tomatina takes place in Buñol, Valencia, Spain
Buñol is a small village on the edge of Spain.
History of La Tomatina
La Tomatina began in 1945 when a group of young men got
into a fight and, taking advantage of a nearby fruit and
vegetable stand, began throwing tomatoes at each other.
The police broke up the altercation and the men involved
were made to pay restitution to the vendor.
The following year the group planned another fight and
brought their own tomatoes which inspired the tradition. It
continued until the early 1950’s when the fight was
prohibited by the town council.
Protests ensued and townsfolk even went as far as having a
“tomato funeral”. Finally in 1957, the town council allowed
the fight to continue and have supplied the tomatoes since
1980.
People that celebrate La Tomatina
• The native people of Buñol
celebrate this festival
shortly after a festival that
honors their Patron Saint.
• Also, this festival brings a
lot of tourist attraction.
• Anywhere from 40,000 to
50,00 people come to
partake in this huge food
fight, which is a big shock
to the 9,000 person
population in Buñol.
Food
The night before La
Tomatina the streets are
filled with people
participating in the
traditional Paella cookoff.
Traditions
To begin the festival a ham is
placed on the top of a very tall,
greased pole. People compete to
climb to the top to retrieve it. Once
someone finally reaches the top
and grabs the ham, the festival
starts!
Rules
 Do not bring bottles or hard objects as they
can cause accidents and may hurt other
participants.
 Do not rip other people’s T-shirts. (Highly
ignored)
 You must squash the tomatoes before throwing
them as this reduces the impact.
 Ensure you keep a safe distance from the
lorries. (The trucks hauling the tomatoes)
 As soon as you hear the 2nd shot, you must
stop throwing tomatoes!
Advice for surviving La Tomatina
 Don’t wear flip-flops, you may get hurt or lose
them.
 Wear old clothes you don’t plan on wearing
again. (Basically, clothes you don’t mind being
ripped off…)
 Bring goggles.
 If you plan to take pictures bring a waterproof
camera…tourists and people with cameras are
prime targets!
Songs
One traditional song that is widely
known is called Ek Junoon (Paint it
Red) by ZNMD. The song is very
upbeat and fun. It repeats “Paint it
Red!” over and over as people
dodge tomatoes.
Fun Facts
 There is no political or religious belief behind La
Tomatina.
 Number of participants from around the world
typically average about 20,000 people.
 Every year the fight is televised by the most
prestigious agencies in Spain.
 La Tomatina sees the sacrifice of about 150,000
tomatoes in under an hour!
 The tomatoes come from Extremadura, where
inferior tasting tomatoes are grown just for the
big event.
Similar to La Tomatina in America!
In Reno, Nevada the American
Cancer Society organized an hour
long tomato fight in 2009. They
gave full credit to the Spanish by
also calling it La Tomatina.
La Tomatina Vocabulary
 La paella - Spanish seafood
stew
 El desfile - parade
 El caos - chaos
 Ensuciar - to dirty, make
messy
 Los fuegos de artificios - fireworks
 El cubo - bucket
 Podrido - rotten
 Botar – to dump, tip over
 Sangriento – bloody
 Aplastar - to squash, smash
 Las gagas – goggles
 Agacharse - to duck (down)
 El objectivo – target
 La batalla - to battle
 teoría - theory
 Seirra, L. &. T. (2012, January 20). La tomatinatomato fight. Retrieved from
http://spanishfood.about.com/od/holidaysfeasts/a/
latomatina.htm

 La tomatina. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.spain.info/en/vive/fiestas/valencia/la_t
omatina.html

 La tomatina, bunol (valencia). (n.d.). Retrieved
from
http://www.donquijote.org/culture/spain/society/h
olidays/tomatina.asp
???’s
 Which city in the U.S. also hosts a tomato
fight?
 In what year did La Tomatina begin?
 Where are the tomatoes for the festival grown?
 What event led to La Tomatina?
 In what year did La Tomatina officially become
a festivity?