According to my 7th grade
health teacher, whom I engaged in a hearty
argument over this very subject with, the
tomato is by
science a fruit, and by
law a vegetable. That's already been said. Now, I suppose y'all wonder
why.
Well, long ago, there were rather high tariffs on vegetables imported, however, not fruits. At the time, the US was using the scientific method of defining tomatoes, and thusly, tomatoes were taxed just as the apples and peaches and everything else. However, as is the case with many proud industries, there was a law passed, specifically, one defining the tomato as a vegetable.
Yes, I did just compare tomatoes to marijuana. (pipelinks)