Dirty Little Secret: Orange Juice Is Artificially Flavored to Taste Like Oranges

[Donnachaidh]

http://gizmodo.com/5825909/orange-juice-is-artificially-flavored-to-taste-like-oranges

How do you make orange juice? Simple! Squeeze oranges and drink. How do big box companies make orange juice? Complicated! Squeeze oranges, remove oxygen, re-flavor the now flavorless orange juice with artificially orange "flavor packs" and...drink? Uhh...

I never thought about it but it makes incredible sense now. Orange juice from Tropicana, Simply Orange, Minute Maid, Florida's Natural, etc.—they're all ridiculously consistent in their flavor. And the trick isn't to get the most delicious tasting oranges but rather to create their own unique artificial flavor.

It all starts with the stripping of the oxygen. Once the juice is squeezed and stored in gigantic vats, they start removing oxygen. Why? Because removing oxygen from the juice allows the liquid to keep for up to a year without spoiling. But! Removing that oxygen also removes the natural flavors of oranges. Yeah, it's all backwards. So in order to have OJ actually taste like oranges, drink companies hire flavor and fragrance companies, the same ones that make perfumes for Dior, to create these "flavor packs" to make juice taste like, well, juice again. A 2009 report says:

The formulas vary to give a brand's trademark taste. If you're discerning you may have noticed Minute Maid has a candy like orange flavor. That's largely due to the flavor pack Coca-Cola has chosen for it. Some companies have even been known to request a flavor pack that mimics the taste of a popular competitor, creating a "hall of mirrors" of flavor packs. Despite the multiple interpretations of a freshly squeezed orange on the market, most flavor packs have a shared source of inspiration: a Florida Valencia orange in spring.


more at the link --

[monmouth]

1. I worked for (Int'l. Flavors and Fragrances) Minute Maid was, at least

at the time one of their numerous customers. IFF also developed the spray for Cheetos and various other chips and last but not least, I worked there during the Coca-Cola debacle. Was even a "taster" for various recipes they came up with. A very interesting place to work..Polo men's fragrance was on of theirs also.

[targetpractice]

5. Fascinating...

Is it true that the Coca-Cola "debacle" was an orchestrated plan changeover to high fructose corn syrup... remove the original from the market long enough for folks to forget exactly how it tasted, then reintroduce Coke Classic with HFCS? Or was it simply the product marketing disaster it appeared to be?

I could Google, but would like to know your insight.

[monmouth]

11. We were told that the original recipe had become far too expensive

to maintain and re-sell at a reasonable price. I pretty much believed that. I taste-tested what eventually became Coke Classic (I thought it was horrid) but cost-wise it worked for them. Everyone was upset about the original recipe being dismissed but we did understand cost concerns. I don't honestly think there was an orchestrated plan but then again I worked in sales, we didn't get much in the way of lab info..

[EOTE]

2. I've always hated store bought orange juices. Even the premium ones.

Yet fresh squeezed orange to me is about the best thing ever. I guess I now know why.

[Retrograde]

14. Fresh orange juice is one of my indulgences

A few local stores - including Trader Joe's - have fresh orange juice. It's pricy, but once you drink it you can't go back to the packaged stuff. Even the pasteurized stuff tastes off to me - there's some chemical in oranges that's affected by heat and I can taste it.

When I was a kid in Buffalo there was a large department store with a grocery in the basement that would squeeze its own orange juice. If they could do it back then, why has fresh orange juice disappeared from so much of the country

ETA: at one local store I can even taste the seasonal differences in the various blends - they use more Valencia oranges in winter, and the juice is paler.

[EOTE]

25. It's a humongous difference.

And I've had stuff that's apparently fresh squeezed that tastes way off to me too, usually it's a good deal more bitter. It must be the pasteurization as you noted.

Generally, the only orange juice that I like is when I get oranges from the store and juice them myself. That stuff is unbelievably good (especially when my folks bring back large bags of oranges from Florida). But the stuff from a carton I'd only drink if I was really thirsty. It just doesn't taste good to me at all. Which is odd because I like other store bought juices. I have no problem with apple or grape juice, even those tropical blends. But store bought OJ h as never tasted good to me.

[malaise]

32. Same here

We buy 100% fresh with no preservatives whatsoever.
Sometimes we squeeze for ourselves

[EOTE]

38. Where do you get 100% fresh?

I've got an Asian market near me that sells fresh squeezed in bottles, but it doesn't taste the same to me.

[tblue37]

48. That explains it. I used to love to drink OJ, but for years now it has just not tasted

good to me. I assumed my taste buds had changed as I got older--maybe acidic juice just wasn't for me any more. Now I can assume it's because I like orange juice--and that stuff isn't really orange juice any more.

[CTyankee]

51. When I was in Sicily a few years ago, they had a machine in the hotel dining room

where you could take a whole orange (they were smaller than the ones here and were blood oranges)and roll it down a little chute and the machine would squeeze it (I don't know how the machine got the peel off). Ecco!

[EOTE]

53. Blood orange juice is the best!

I had it nearly every morning on my trips to Europe. If there's one thing better than fresh squeezed orange juice, it's fresh squeezed blood orange juice.

[CTyankee]

54. Amazing, isn't it? I wasn't in a fancy hotel and they had this thing. Everybody

who wanted it got fresh orange juice (literally). Just put the orange in the little chute and down it goes and out comes fresh orange juice!


It was great...why don't we have it here?

[MineralMan]

3. Yes, it is, and for the reason you mention.

You could pasteurize the orange juice to make it stand up to storage without spoiling, and that has been done in the past. Consumers don't like the flavor of pasteurized orange juice, though.

It's a problem without a better solution. My parents own a citrus farm. I grew up drinking orange juice that was squeezed just before serving. I'm more or less used to the flavor of commercial juice now, but it's very different. When I visit my parents, I revisit that old flavor.

There's no real way to process orange juice for the commercial market without the technique you mention or by pasteurization. The solution is to purchase oranges and squeeze them yourself. It's an expensive solution, though. Those flavor packs aren't harmful, but they're necessary if orange juice is to be shipped all over the country in the quantities required.

Enjoy!

[Name removed]

18. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[MineralMan]

20. Feh! I have no corporate associations whatsoever.

My parents have a citrus farm. 15 acres.

Since you changed the title of your post, this may not make sense to others.

[Blue_Tires]

4. I remember going to Brazil and thinking the orange juice was mis-labeled

Because it tasted so different...

[Big Blue Marble]

6. Please consider eating and drinking only real foods.

One of the best ways we can fight corporatism is avoid processed foods manufactured by the major food corps.
Assume everything they make is manipulated in multiple ways. When our foods are manipulated, we are manipulated.

Think before you eat; you will appreciate the difference in how you feel. And your body will thank you.

[Atman]

7. I grew up in Florida.

The real juice from roadside stands is unbelievable. I give credit to some of the big boys, like Florida's Natural...at least it kind of tastes like real oranges. But how the hell does anyone stomach that Minute Maid (Coca Cola) crap, or Tropicana? I guess if you grew up in Wisconsin, you don't really know any better. But once you taste real, fresh-squeezed juice, there is just no going back.

BTW, it was very subtle, but several years ago Tropicana (probably about the same time Coca Cola bought them) used to say "Fresh Squeezed Florida Orange Juice" on the carton. Then, quietly, they changed the language to "Florida Squeezed Orange Juice." IOW, they squeeze 'em in Florida, but God only knows where the actual oranges come from. Could be Chile, could be China. But they squeeze them in Florida, then ship the concentrate to plants all over the country for reconstitution.

.

[musiclawyer]

9. There is a place in Portland

Right near Jen Weld that is a gluten free bakery and breakfast place. My son ordered OJ from them. They whip out some organic oranges and squeeze into the glass. Boom, Now THAT is orange juice ( Disclaimer: I hate organge juice, I am type O blood and it has always made me feel ill, consistent with what a lot of acquaintances have told me over the years about their relationship with OJ).

[dixiegrrrrl]

17. Packaged OJ makes me sick, too, and I never knew why.

Has the same effect on me that wheat does: severe joint pain and..."tummy" problems.

Never thought about blood type, will have to look into that.

[REP]

43. I'm B- and can't drink much orange juice

Blood group and food tolerances/preferences is BS. I can't drink much OJ due to the amount of potassium it has and it gives me heartburn.

[LeftyMom]

55. Blood type diets are bunk.

I'm O+, I can't eat half the stuff I'm supposed to eat on those diets, and I <3 orange juice. :shrug:

[murielm99]

13. My parents used to buy OJ at the roadside stands.

They told me that it did not keep, but had to be consumed right away. They could not bring it back to Illinois. It would go bad quickly.

That made me wonder about what kind of juice we were buying here in the stores.

I usually squeeze my own juice, when I have oranges.

They stopped going to Florida about three years ago. My dad is not up to the trip.

Does that make sense to you, about how the juice from the stands has to be used up soon after purchase? Does that square with your experience?

[Atman]

15. Jonathan's Pub, Cocoa Beach, Florida.

Friend them on FB. A dive bar. I met my wife there, and next week we're celebrating our 29th anniversary! Anyway, Jonathan's has always used fresh oranges and grapefruits for their drinks. They have a big vat of oranges and grapefruits behind the bar. When you order a screwdriver, they slice the orange in half and squeeze it right before your eyes. There is no finer cocktail on this planet. If you're ever in Central Florida, stop by and tell 'em I said "high." (No, I didn't misspell that).

[formercia]

29. I was stationed in Key West during the 60's

My treat in the Evenings I didn't have Duty, was to go over to the USO where one could get a HUGE cup of fresh-squeezed OJ for a quarter.
I think the roadside stands are great too. What better use for the blems that won't sell.

[Atman]

34. That's the other problem...we have to have "perfect" oranges.

A friend of mine in Florida owned an orange grove, and he'd pay us in product to help him pick in-season (the "product" often included other green stuff as well -- wink wink nudge nudge). His grove was all organic, and the fruit was usually bumpy and had spots. The "oranges" you buy in the supermarket now are virtually fake. They are polished and coated with Carnuba wax, and anything with a brown spot or a bump is sent to the juice bin. And they taste like nothing. But the bushels of fresh tangelos we'd take home were simply heavenly. Who cares what the skin looks like? The fruit itself was sublime.

.

[formercia]

45. The crap in the store isn't Tree Ripened

I mean, falling off the tree, ripe. You know what it's like. Nothing like a little toke to make work fun. Not so much you fall off the Ladder as well.

[Fuddnik]

57. They ruined grapefruits the same way.

They want to sell varieties with hardly any seeds.

I live in Florida, and a neighbor behind me had a grapefruit tree. I think it was a Duncan. It had a lot of seeds, but it made the best juice you ever tasted. Really sweet. Unfortunately it hasn't produced a fruit for two years. It used to be loaded.

When I find good ones, I juice them and freeze the juice in 1 gallon zip lock bags. I'm drinking a glass right now.

And my SIL, next door has a tangelo tree, that makes the sweetest juice you ever had. You have to cut it with vodka.

[trotsky]

35. I agree, Florida's Natural is the best you're going to do in the store.

Plus it's a farmer co-op, so it feels good supporting them.

[Romulox]

41. That's my brand, and I think it tastes excellent. nt

[Richard D]

8. Gross

Whenever I see artificial or natural flavors added, I assume that the "food" tastes blander than cardboard, having had anything good taken out of it. Then the "flavors" are added to trick the instinctual nature into thinking that it's good.

[theaocp]

10. Anything about frozen cans of OJ?

Just curious and no time right now to read more. Thanks!

[pansypoo53219]

12. i use frozen concentrated for cooking and occasionally drink it(less water makes it better)

never want that carton stuff. i am more a homemade grapefruite ade in winter and organic hand made lemonade in summer. no waste that is not compost-able.

[L0oniX]

16. Stay away from juice cocktails.

[Atman]

21. Try finding real Cranberry juice.

I hate Stop & Shop, a formerly Boston-based grocery chain, now owed by Royal Dutch Ahold, I believe. But S&S is the only store I can find that sells REAL cranberry juice. As in 100%, pure, organic cranberry juices. Cranberry juice is supposed to be one of the best things you can put in your body. Good for your kidneys, high in anti-oxidents, just good for you. But try finding it at your local store. Be careful...don't be fooled by the "100% Natural" or "100% pure juice" labels. Bullshit...they're juice COCKTAILS. Read the label. First ingredients are water, high fructose corn syrup (or "corn sugar" these days), followed by grape juice concentrate, pear juice concentrate, apple juice concentrate, then some cranberry flavor. But, like orange juice, the real stuff is intense. Incredible flavor. And 100% better for you than the factory-reconstituted crap. You'll find a hundred different brands of cranberry juice "cocktail" at the supermarket, and not a single one of them is actually cranberry juice.

[WinkyDink]

24. The real cranberry juice is mouth-puckering!

[Atman]

26. Like real sex.

You can have your Wednesday night romp. Then there's the crazy, drunken, loud-music-and-toys Saturday bang-a-thon. Sometimes you need to pucker up!

:hi:

.

[LibertyLover]

28. Ah, Royal Dutch Ahold -

or as we call them in our house Real Douchy @sshole. They bought out Giant Supermarkets here in Maryland and what had been a very decent chain of supermarkets became less than mediocre. My husband worked for Giant at the time it was bought and I told him how bad Stop & Shop had been (I knew them from when I lived in New Jersey). He didn't believe me. Then all the changes started and long-time employees started being marginalized as their salaries and benefits were too expensive for the bottom line. And the petty indignities and harassments became too numerous to mention. Just under the limit of where the union could step in, but onerous just the same. After a year or so, he finally had enough and like most other remaining full time employees, he quit. You are so right about the stuff they stock - most of it is garbage.

[Atman]

30. In New England, we actually have a local, family owned grocery chain.

Big Y. The D'Amour family, started as a little corner grocery in Chicopee, Mass. They are now one of the finest supermarkets I've ever been in. It pisses me off when friends and neighbors go to Stop & Shop or Wal Mart "because the prices are better." Bullshit. The prices are rarely different by more than a few cents, and Big Y buys LOCAL produce from LOCAL farms. And therefore, all the money stays LOCAL. I go to Stop & Shop for one item and one item only...organic 100% cranberry juice.

.

[CTyankee]

52. I wish Big Y had a store nearer to me. I'd love to shop there.

My Stop and Shop is quite close to me and I get a discount on gas there. And Stop and Shop DID buy the former Shaw store in a "food desert" here in New Haven and hire folks from the neighborhood and former Shaw employees. For that I am grateful. I also like the fact that their workers are unionized.

[L0oniX]

37. I live on cranberry juice.

[woo me with science]

39. Tried recently and couldn't find the real stuff.

At least not in our two closest markets. It was all either blends of juices (with cranberry last on the list) or cocktails that were mostly sugar water.

[REP]

44. Cranberry juice can help prevent bladder infections, but doesn't help kidneys

It won't hurt them any but cranberry juice has no direct benefit to the kidneys. It does help prevent bacteria from 'sticking' to the walls of the bladder, so it is good for those prone to lower tract urinary infections. At least, that's what my nephrologist told me.

Fish oil is good for kidneys.

[Dappleganger]

19. We eat the oranges instead of juicing them.

We have a few trees in the back (orange and naval) so get them en masse while they're in season, but otherwise just buy them and eat 'em as they are the rest of the year (unless they are just too high). Likewise w/apples, although most apples taste too mealy for us even after leaving apple country in VA a decade ago. Honestly, we just don't drink much juice at all because of the high sugar and flavoring content.

[Atman]

22. My parents used to buy those juicer straws you stuck into the orange.

They had a sippy on end, and teeth on the orange end. You jammed them through the orange peel and sucked the juice and pulp out. Heaven.

.

[truebrit71]

23. Wow. That's messed up. About the only time I get OJ anymore is with vodka...

...but I really used to like it with a weekend brunch one in a while...will make sure to get fresh-squeezed next time..

[goforit]

27. A month ago I swore I was drinking TANG instead of OJ.

[NashVegas]

31. Organic OJ Is Expensive As All Hell

But the difference in taste is unbelievable.

[Evasporque]

33. Boehner Toner!

hahahahah!

[Liberal_in_LA]

36. really?

[Romulox]

40. Is there any other way to produce grocery store stable OJ?

Doesn't seem like a big deal to introduce a bit of <horror> orange oil </horror> back into the stuff for flavor. As mentioned, pasteurized juice tastes far worse.

[Retrograde]

47. Fresh orange juice does go bad fairly quickly

at least in terms of store shelf-lives. It will start to ferment in about a week, even refrigerated. It's still drinkable but it tastes different.

Fresh oranges, however, will keep long enough off the tree to ship from where they grow to places in the north. As I mentioned in a previous post, stores in upstate NY were able to make fresh orange juice from real oranges on the spot in the 60s: there's no reason why they can't do so now. Aside from some $$$ not going into Coke and Pepsi's coffers.

[Historic NY]

42. No wonder even with vodka it tastes funny.

[Blue Owl]

46. John Boehner is artificially colored to look like oranges

n/t

[Le Taz Hot]

49. Two orange trees in the back.

Picked, squeezed, served, all within 3 minutes. Free. If you can't grow oranges there's nothing wrong with buying oranges (must be sweet) and squeezing the juice yourself. When you make it from scratch, whatever "it" is, you, 1) control the process and 2) control the ingredients.

[Obamanaut]

50. On a neighboring topic - lemonade. There is a sandwich shop in

High Springs, Fla., that makes their lemonade as it is ordered. Squeezes the lemons while you watch. It is the best lemonade I've ever tasted.

I also prefer to squeeze oranges myself, or simply peel them and eat them.

Tasty!

[flvegan]

56. I'm very lucky

to have a place that sells both orange and grapefruit juice squeezed from their groves out back. Best stuff in the world, not really much more expensive than the grocery store cartons.