President's Choice (Loblaws) Concentrated Orange Juice, Canada Grade A, tastes great!

For the life of me I could not find the definitions for the various grades of frozen orange juice for Canada. Personal experience has shown me that Canada Grade A frozen orange juice tastes better than Canada Grade C. I searched Google and came up empty. I then got onto the Canada Food Inspection Agency website and sent them a question. Here is their answer as a followup to yesterday’s blog, thanks to Jean-Claude Jura, Ontario Region Manufactured Food, Food Labelling Line: Processed Products Regulations, Schedule I, Table II, Section 27.2.

I was impressed that this standard was codified as one of the laws of Canada. Of course I knew that there were strict standards written somewhere in government, but did not know where. This law covers all fruits and vegetables, so it is quite long but very thorough. It is also a public document. While Google is a very good search engine, I still could not find this information on my own.

FROZEN CONCENTRATED ORANGE JUICE
27.2 (1) In this section,

“frozen concentrated orange juice” means the frozen product consisting of

(a) unfermented juice obtained from clean, sound and mature oranges that has been concentrated to at least one half of its original volume, the total soluble solids content of which is derived from

(i) not less than 85 per cent of sweet oranges of the species Citrus sinensis,

(ii) not more than 10 per cent of the species Citrus reticulata or hybrids of any species of oranges, and

(iii) not more than five per cent of sour or bitter oranges of the species Citrus aurantium;

(b) concentrated orange juice for manufacturing prepared from the juice of a lot of oranges from which the pulp may be removed and to which the water extract of that pulp may be added prior to evaporation; or

(c) a mixture of the juices referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b).

(2) Frozen concentrated orange juice

(a) may contain orange essences, orange oils and orange pulp derived from orange juice referred to in paragraph (1)(a) and potable water;

(b) shall not contain solids or water extract of the pulp of oranges except as provided in paragraph (1)(b); and

(c) shall not contain mould filaments in more than 10 per cent of the microscopic fields when examined in accordance with the method of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists of the United States of America entitled the Howard Mold Counting method published in Official Methods of Analysis of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists (14th ed.), 1984.

(3) Frozen concentrated orange juice shall be stored at temperatures below -15°C.

(4) Canada A is the name for the grade of frozen concentrated orange juice in prepackaged product form that, when reconstituted

(a) has the appearance of fresh orange juice;

(b) shows no separation or coagulation of material;

(c) has a very good colour;

(d) has a very good flavour;

(e) is practically free from defects;

(f) has a Brix content of not less than 11.8;

(g) has a Brix/acid ratio minimum of 12.5/1; and

(h) has a recoverable oil percentage by volume of 0.010 to 0.035.

(5) Canada B is the name for the grade of frozen concentrated orange juice in prepackaged product form that, when reconstituted

(a) has the appearance of fresh orange juice;

(b) shows no separation or coagulation of material;

(c) has a good colour;

(d) has a good flavour;

(e) is reasonably free from defects;

(f) has a Brix content of not less than 10.6;

(g) has a Brix/acid ratio minimum of 12.5/1; and

(h) has a maximum recoverable oil percentage by volume of 0.035.

(6) Canada C is the name for the grade of frozen concentrated orange juice in prepackaged product form that, when reconstituted

(a) has the appearance of fresh orange juice;

(b) shows no separation or coagulation of material;

(c) has a good colour;

(d) has a good flavour;

(e) is reasonably free from defects;

(f) has a Brix content of not less than 9.7;

(g) has a Brix/acid ratio minimum of 10.0/1; and

(h) has a maximum recoverable oil percentage by volume of 0.040.

Definition of Terms
(7) For the purposes of this section,

“acid” means the percentage by weight of the total acidity calculated as anhydrous citric acid and determined by titration, in accordance with the method of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists of the United States, entitled “Acidity (Titratable) of Fruit Products”, published in Official Methods of Analysis of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists, (14th ed.), 1984; (acide)

“Brix content” means the refractometric sucrose content to which the applicable correction for acid is added, and determined in accordance with the method of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists of the United States, entitled “Solids (Soluble) in Fruits and Fruit Products”, published in Official Methods of Analysis of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists, (14th ed.), 1984; (valeur Brix)

“Brix/acid ratio” means the ratio of Brix content of the juice to the grams of anhydrous citric acid per 100 grams of the juice; (rapport Brix/acide)

“colour” means that colour of orange juice determined by comparing the colour of the juice with the United States Department of Agriculture Orange Juice Colour Comparator, in which colour standard #1 is the best colour on the scale and colour standard #6 the worst on the scale or by any colorimeters used by the Agency that have equivalent scales of colours and yield values equivalent to those of the United States Department of Agriculture Orange Juice Colour Comparator; (couleur)

“concentrated orange juice for manufacturing” means the product having a Brix content of not less than 20, packed in bulk containers, prepared by concentration of the unfermented juice of clean, sound, mature, sweet oranges of the species Citrus sinensis and containing not more than 10 per cent total soluble solids from the species Citrus reticulata or hybrids of any species of oranges and not more than five per cent total soluble solids from the species Citrus aurantium; (jus d’orange concentré pour transformation)

“defects” means any seeds or portion of seeds, specks, particles of membrane, core, peel or any other distinctive features that adversely affect the appearance or drinking quality of the orange juice; (défauts)

“good colour” means that colour of orange juice that is not as good as the United States Department of Agriculture colour standard #5 for orange juice but that is not off-colour; (bonne couleur)

“good flavour” means the flavour that is characteristic of orange juice extracted from fresh, mature, sweet oranges that may be slightly affected by processing, packaging or storage conditions; (bonne saveur)

“practically free from defects” means the presence of defects that do not detract from the appearance or drinking quality of the orange juice; (à peu près exempt de défauts)

“reasonably free from defects” means the presence of defects that do not seriously affect the appearance or the drinking quality of the orange juice; (raisonnablement exempt de défauts)

“reconstituted” with respect to frozen concentrated orange juice, means the form of orange juice that results when frozen concentrated orange juice is thoroughly mixed with the amount of water prescribed on the label of the container; (reconstitué)

“recoverable oil” means the volume of oil that may be recovered from the reconstituted juice by the method of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists of the United States, entitled “Oil (Recoverable) in Fruits and Fruit Products” published in Official Methods of Analysis of the Association of Official Analytical Chemists, (14th ed.), 1984; (huile recouvrable)

“separation” means the separation of orange juice whereby lighter suspended material rises upward and heavier suspended material sinks downward leaving between the two materials a clear or transparent liquid; (séparation)

“very good colour” means that colour of orange juice which is equal to or better than the United States Department of Agriculture colour standard #5 for orange juice; (très bonne couleur)

“very good flavour” means the flavour that is fine, distinct and characteristic of orange juice that is extracted from fresh, mature, sweet oranges. (très bonne saveur)

SOR/88-8, s. 2; SOR/95-548, s. 2; SOR/2000-184, s. 27; SOR/2003-6, s. 65(F).

Marketing Gimmick: Not From Concentrate (NFC) orange juice does not mean fresher than concentrated OJ

We live in Toronto, Canada, so do not have the luxury of going to our backyard, picking fresh oranges and juicing them. Still we love to drink orange juice, a call which is answered by a trip to the local big box grocery store. Orange Juice can be expensive, so I have done several blind taste tests on the family to see if they can tell the difference between types. In summary, there is no difference in taste between concentrate and “not from concentrate” (NFC) types. Canada Grade “A” No Name brands taste the same as good as the name brands. Added calcium does not change the taste of OJ. Chinese orange juice is discernibly tarter and therefore easy to identify. If you can buy orange juice for $1CAD/litre, this is good economy.

I have always wondered if “Not from Concentrate” orange juice was a marketing gimmick. On sale it is just a little more expensive than concentrated OJ, but my family cannot tell the difference in taste. At regular price NFC OJ can be more than double the price of concentrated OJ. It turns out that NFC OJ is indeed a marketing gimmick. “Not from Concentrate” does not mean fresher, even though this is implied.

“It’s a misconception that it’s freshly squeezed from the groves of Florida,” she said.

Rather, it’s often a heavily processed product. In the pasteurization process, it’s heated, stripped of oxygen and flavor chemicals, then put in huge storage vats for up to a year. When it’s ready for packaging, flavor derived from orange essence and oils is added to make it taste fresh. Each company has its own special flavor pack, but to call it natural at this point is a real stretch, she said.

Apparently my favourite “with pulp” OJ is more nutritious than the filtered OJ. There’s more fibre, that’s for sure, and may be more flavourful. Similar to bones in meat, the kids find the pulp a hassle. How they exercise their mandibles constantly, so easily and on a daily basis, even without extra pulp, is a mystery.

We have had our share of Chinese orange juice. Chinese apparently like a tarter tasting orange, so their OJ is naturally the same. Still, I would not trust Chinese OJ after their milk debacle.

The large beverage companies all market OJ. Tropicana is PepsiCo, and Minute Maid is Coca-Cola. My wife does not like to drink either Pepsi nor Coke, so was shocked when I told her the ownership of these major OJ brand names. Oh dear!

I do like the newer versions of concentrated OJ that offers added calcium. It is hard to get the kids their proper daily calcium intake. OJ with added calcium cannot be legally labeled “Canada Grade A” here in Canada because it is no longer natural, as stated by the Canada Food Inspection Agency:

Foods or ingredients of foods submitted to processes that have significantly altered their original physical, chemical or biological state should not be described as “natural”. This includes such changes as the removal of caffeine.

• A natural food or ingredient of a food is not expected to contain, or to ever have contained, an added vitamin, mineral nutrient, artificial flavouring agent or food additive.
• A natural food or ingredient of a food does not have any constituent or fraction thereof removed or significantly changed, except the removal of water.

Search as I may, I still cannot get a solid deferentiation of Canada Grade A, B, or C orange juice from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Years ago I tried Canada Grade C orange juice and it was less tasty than Canada Grade A. Still, I rarely see Canada Grade C OJ available anyway. Canada Grade A is all we can get. I have emailed the CFIA (cfiamaster at inspection.gc.ca) for an answer and will post it if and when they reply.

It is the foods we eat on a daily basis that have the most effect on your health, both good and ill. By paying attention to food staples that border on boring that we can reduce the risks and increase utility of the foods we eat.

I'll never buy this Old South tetra pack top again. It's messy and tastes awful.

I usually have no issues with orange juice packaging, and as such take it for granted. This is not so for “Old South” orange juice with tetra top packaging. I will never again purchase any product with this type of packaging, no matter how much they go on sale.

Firstly, “Old South”, run by McCain Foods, decided their new packaging should contain less orange juice, so they cut their volume from 355 ml to 330 ml, a reduction of 7%. Because this orange juice is in concentrate, you also add 7% less water, resulting in 100 ml less overall orange juice. Why then is there no 7% reduction in the price of the product?

To add insult to injury, Old South has changed their orange juice formulation and tastes much worse than before. I’m not confident enough with the taste of this orange juice to serve this to my kids, which is a first.

The waxed cardboard tetra packaging is not an issue with me, but the new pull off top has issues. When I use it the concentrate gets all over my hands. While I do wash my hands before I mix the juice, getting concentrate on my hands is wasteful and there is possibility for cross contamination. It is simply not as hygenic as the older external tab packaging.

Thankfully competing orange juice makers have stuck to the older but tried and true 355 ml external tab packaging, which is cleaner and easier to use. In fact, No Frills has their no name orange juice that is 355 ml, old external tab packaging and tastes so much better than Old South. It’s also 20% cheaper, which is a bonus.

The juice market has many large players as well as many packaging forms, which allows me to make my choice of not buying Old South for many years to come an easy one.

New Old South orange juice packaging: new tetra pack + new tetra top + messy usability + less product + worse tasting product + price increase = not in my house.