The Truth in Pulp Fiction

As a child, I grew up drinking Tropicana. I use to love OJ and had it almost everyday. You wouldn’t catch me dead picking up bottled juice from the supermarket after finding out the truth behind bottled juices.

Back in the day during World War II when troops were sent off to war, the government wanted to ensure they had plenty of vitamin C among other nutrients. They wanted to preserve orange juice and therefore they invested in the research to discover how to preserve the juice and send it over. The result was removing the oxygen in the juice stripping nutrients and natural aroma of oranges leaving behind sugar water and then adding the nutrients back in. Over time, companies like Coca Cola and PepsiCo created their own ‘flavor packs’ for signature tastes and scents that were consistent. The process pretty much goes like this, dehydration of squeezed OJ, stored in tanks for about 8-12 months, pasteurized to kill off any bacteria, flavor packs are added, and voila you have a fresh bottle of Tropicana.

Any bottled juice with an expiration date longer than 3 days has been pasteurized and processed. If you are looking for that vitamin C, just squeeze your own oranges or blend a smoothie with assorted fruits which all provide high amounts of vitamin C from berries to leafy greens.