Check out Mott’s Singles 100% Juice Singles. Their ads have recently been cropping up. According to the company the product is
…a delicious drink with the health benefits of real fruit. Made of 100% juice, it’s conveniently packaged so you can enjoy it on the go.
Let’s take a closer look, especially at the “health benefits”.
What you need to know:
Here is the ingredient list for the Grape Medley Product
Water, Pear Juice and Grape Juice Concentrates, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Vegetable Juice (for Color), Citric Acid.
Note that the first ingredient is water, not juice.
So how can the product be called 100% juice?
If you look closely at the package, it says:
Naturally Grape Flavored 100% Juice Blend from Concentrate With Added Ingredients
Ah, so you can trick consumers to think they are getting juice, when in fact they are getting water mixed with concentrate that may have been lying around in a refrigerated vat for 6 months or longer. What does that do the antioxidants and vitamins.
But our real issue here is the crazy amount of sugar – 55 grams. That’s 14 teaspoons. Yes, they do come from the fruit itself, but when you consume a real fruit, you also get the fiber and the nutrients that are no longer present in juice form.
The only vitamin here in abundance is vitamin C (100%), added to the juice as Ascorbic acid.
Not a good nutrition deal at all.
That’s not say juice can’t be a treat every once in a while, but definitely not something to pack in a lunchbox on a daily basis.
What to do at the supermarket:
Don’t buy into the “juice is a healthy hydration solution” bit. Fruits are healthy. Water is the best daily hydration solution. If you are going to drink juice, freshly squeezed is the tastiest, healthiest (and most expensive) option for you.
(hat tip to Chef Mike)
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