Is there such a thing as an authentic orange? Are they not just hybrid citrons? Is it not just a flavor that one can instill into whatever fruit juice we can cheaply manufacture? Such thoughts are now the thoughts of orange juice makers, eager to maintain profits as prices rise.
disease, along with severe heat waves and drought that occurred during the pivotal phases of flowering and early fruit formation, have put Brazil on track to register one of its worst orange harvests in more than three decades, according to a new report published by Fundecitrus and CitrusBR. … "This is a crisis," Kees Cools, president of the International Fruit and Vegetable Juice Association (IFU), told the Financial Times. "We've never seen anything like it, even during the big freezes and big hurricanes." Cools said that manufacturers may have to consider using a different fruit, like mandarins, because their trees are more resistant to the greening disease. However, that could be a lengthy process.
The cunning mention of mandarin juice only makes me more skeptical, as that's not a lower-quality product. The reality is that orange juice makers are adulterating and faking the product as it is. You're not going to get mandarins, you're going to get whatever the cheapest citrus is with ascorbic acid and orange oil in it.
Previously:
• Tropicana redesigned its orange juice carton and lost $30 million
• Orange juice's deep, dark secrets
