{
  "id": 9675707,
  "title": "Taste of home: How kindness helped small businesses stay afloat during Iran war",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/25/taste-of-home-how-kindness-helped-small-businesses-stay-afloat-during-9675707",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-25T02:00:01.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The National Business",
    "slug": "the-national-business",
    "url": "https://www.thenationalnews.com/news/uae/2026/09/25/taste-of-home-how-kindness-helped-small-businesses-stay-afloat-during-iran-war/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A modest act of kindness helped small businesses in Dubai weather the initial turmoil of the Iran war. Yassine Azzouni, known as the Tomato Man, lost access to his primary customers when restaurants and hotels closed. Instead of giving up, he invited friends and relatives to collect premium tomatoes from his warehouse for free. This simple gesture turned into a lifeline for Azzouni's business. Friends shared photos of the distinctive heart-shaped tomatoes on social media, sparking widespread interest. Azzouni began selling directly to the public, leveraging the community's support to keep his business afloat. Chef Milan Jurkovic of 21 grams Bistro lauded the quality of the tomatoes, recalling their taste reminiscent of home. The community's generosity kept Azzouni's business alive, demonstrating the spirit of unity that defines Dubai.",
  "summary": "Eight hundred kilograms of premium tomatoes were at risk of going to waste when orders to Yassine Azzouni's Dubai business collapsed in the opening days of the Iran war. With restaurants and hotels closed, the Algerian-Canadian supplier invited friends and relatives to collect the produce for free from his warehouse. And what began as an effort to save the tomatoes soon became a lifeline for his…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The National UAE",
        "title": "Taste of home: How kindness helped small businesses stay afloat during Iran war",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/25/taste-of-home-how-kindness-helped-small-businesses-stay-afloat-during",
        "published": "2026-09-25T02:00:01.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}