A vital component of the juice product that enables the juice to be made, stored, transported, sold and consumed whilst at the same time protecting the product from spoilage, degradation and preserving the life of the product, thereby minimising wastage. Key points of consideration and areas for improvement relating to packaging materials and types include: waste minimisation and light weighting - working with packaging suppliers to reduce the input materials, without compromising on product integrity and ensuring it’s fit for purpose increasing the recycled content for all packaging materials to a minimum of 50% post-consumer recyclate in both paper/board, glass and plastic materials (thereby reducing the reliance on the use of virgin material) and print on-pack to promote the effort of using recycled material and the recyclability of the packaging utilise only packaging materials that have a viable and commercial recycling stream i.e., cardboard, glass, PET, HDPE and reduce/eliminate coated materials, co-extruded plastics, expanded polystyrene etc., which make recycling difficult as they contaminate the recycling stream promote and endorse waste capture and recycling and the conversion of these waste materials back into new end use materials, thereby reducing waste to landfill and reprocessing and reusing a valuable resource that can be used many times over

Juice - CITRUS AUSTRALIA

The Importance of Juice

The juice sector is hugely important to the overall citrus industry. Accounting for approximately 24% of the citrus industry, juicing oranges - Valencias, are grown predominantly for juicing but some are also sold into the fresh market.

Whilst some growers focus solely on growing Valencias, the variety is also grown by a large number of citrus growers as a summer ripening crop to complement their seasonal output throughout the year.

The juicing industry also takes in a percentage of navel oranges and mandarins that don’t meet specifications or grade requirements to be sold on the fresh market, thereby providing an outlet for fruit that still tastes great and can be included into the final juice mix.

A serving of juice with no added sugar, according to the Australian Dietary Guidelines, is 125mL.

The Australian Dietary Guidelines state that an occasional 125ml glass of fruit juice with no added sugar is equivalent to one serve of fruit. Without juice, many Australians would not consume their recommended daily intake of fruit.

100% orange juice is a natural product; it is just fruit that has been juiced, with nothing added or taken away. Water makes up about 90% of 100% orange juice with the remainder consisting of natural sugars from the fruit, vitamin C, folate, potassium and other vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients such as hesperidin.

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Table of Contents

Growing Juicing Oranges

Valencia Orange Overview

The Valencia orange is considered to be the best juice orange in the world, accounting for more than half the production of oranges grown.

Named after a region in Spain with a reputation for producing sweet citrus, Valencia oranges are prized for being a particularly sweet variety of orange with an excellent taste.

The fruit can contain up to six cream-colored seeds and is made up of 10 to 12 sections of sweet, tender, juicy flesh with a tangy and tart flavour and low acidity. Valencia oranges are extremely juicy with the average orange yielding about 70ml of juice.

The fruit is also sold as an eating orange, and can be found in store around October to March. Valencia oranges sometimes endure a natural process called "regreening" in late spring and summer. This process occurs when fruit is left on the tree during summer months.

Warm temperatures cause a pigment called chlorophyll to return to the orange's skin which causes the greenish tint. The colour of skin has no effect on the sweetness or quality of the orange.

Growing Juicing Oranges

The main Valencia growing region in Australia is the Riverina, accounting for 49% of Australia’s juicing fruit, followed by the Riverland in South Australia at 17% and Western Australia at 15%. Further insights into tree census data can be found in the Citrus Tree Census information in our members’ section.

Generally speaking, Valencias are a summer crop and navel oranges are a winter crop. Navel oranges are primarily grown as an eating orange, whilst they can be juiced and produce a delicious juice, you can’t store it for long once juiced or it will become bitter. Navel orange juice is at its best the same day it’s squeezed.

The Valencia season runs from November to February, however fresh Australian juice is available year-round. Over many years, growers and breeders have worked to develop a number of varieties that ripen and mature at different times, to ensure the availability of juicing fruit for the whole year. In some instances, fruit is left to mature on the tree over the early winter period to extend the Valencia season and harvested when required. Around 22 varieties are grown in Australia, with the more common varieties being; Keenan, Delta, McMahon and Valencia.

Producing a consistently great tasting fresh Australia juice year-round requires skill, knowledge and experience. In addition to a range of varieties that fall under the Valencia category maturing at different times throughout the season, other factors come in to play, particularly the weather and growing conditions, which affect the fruits sweetness, level of maturity, acid levels etc. Juice growers and juice processors work together to ensure they have the right variety mix of fruit, so the natural sugar and acid ratios are balanced. This may mean more of one variety of Valencia is required at a particular time of year and this is constantly reviewed as the season progresses.

Juice is a natural product, not a product manufactured made to a set formula from a range of ingredients and that’s what’s reflected in the bottle. We are lucky to have access to such a great tasting, healthy and nutritious product, and thanks must go to the dedicated Valencia growers.

Grower Profiles

Robert Hoddle

Thirteen years ago, the Hoddle family decided to take advantage of their perfect climate and land to grow citrus fruits. They now have 23,000 trees across 40 hectares, supplying the industry with the sweetest, juiciest Salustiana oranges throughout winter and spring.

With three generations of farming history behind him, Robert Hoddle knows a thing or two about sustainability. Robert takes care of the environment by using the latest drip irrigation technology, integrated pest management and recycled citrus peel.

‘Citrus uses water very economically, giving a higher return per megalitre of water. Just by growing citrus, we’re using Australia’s scarce resources well. In addition, our precious underground water is drip fed straight to the tree roots so there is no wastage or ground evaporation. We also use the drip system for fertilising, choosing environmentally friendly carbon fertilisers to enhance the soil,’ said Robert.

‘For pest control, we’ve put a lot of thought and effort into our Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program,’ says Robert. ‘Predator wasps control the insects, minimising the need to use pest control sprays. This is obviously healthier for everyone.' Source: Eastcoast Beverages.

Justin Davidson

This is a strong family business that has been passed down through four generations, making me the 5th now. My grandfathers and father have been heavily involved with the industry for more than a century, so I guess you can say it was always in my blood.

Being a fifth-generation farmer in the Leeton area, suppling fruit equal to or better than the citrus industry benchmark makes me proud to be an Australian grower. Knowing the end result of all our hard work ends up apart of another Australian’s dietary requirement is quite meaningful.

Processing Juice

Processing for Juice

Of course, the quickest method of processing juice is to simply squeeze your own juice for immediate consumption. However, that’s not always doable. Bottled juice offers convenience at an affordable and accessible price, with no compromise on taste, quality, or health benefits. For the purpose of this illustration on the processing process, we’ll focus on chilled orange juice and also provide explanations for the most common processing claims that appear on chilled and shelf juice products.

At the manufacturing stage, when juice from oranges has been extracted and the pulp removed, the product is processed into two forms: not-from-concentrate (NFC) or bulk frozen/unfrozen concentrated orange juice (FCOJ).

What does ‘from concentrate’ mean?

What does ‘not from concentrate’ mean?

For orange juice to be considered and labelled “not from concentrate,” it must be processed without any water removal and reconstitution. Juice not made from concentrate will undergo a form of treatment; cold pressed, pasteurised, flash pasteurised or high-pressure processing. These forms of treatment will ensure the safety of the juice and extend its shelf life. The addition of preservatives can be used in conjunction with the treatment methods as another form of shelf-life extension. The juice processor will determine the best treatment and preservative option to deliver the best tasting juice, with a manageable shelf life, that maintains the health and nutritional benefits of the fruit. It is also possible the juice producer will extract orange oil from the peel and add it to the juice to make the juice more flavourful. Freshly squeezed juice can be processed without any treatment at all. This juice will be distributed chilled and the life of the product will be relatively short, up to or fewer than eight days.

Key Steps

Processing considerations to maximize juice product quality

At the fruit processor

Choice of orange fruit
Short holding time in the fruit bins before extraction to prevent deterioration of fruit
Fruit washing and grading
Fruit sizing
Optimal extractor pressure and correct finisher settings to avoid unwanted (often bitter) compounds in fruit from entering the juice

At the juice packer

Preventing air contact during the processing phase
Water quality
Short holding time for juice prior to pasteurisation (or other treatment method) to minimise microbial growth and vitamin C degradation
Use of correct temperatures during pasteurisation and filling
Package integrity
Storage conditions

Raw Materials – the Oranges

The primary ingredient is of course, oranges. The quality of the fruit is important for the characteristics of the final orange juice product. Usually, a blend of different varieties of oranges, namely Valencias, are used to give the juice a pleasant flavour, free from bitterness. The selection of fruit is based on the breed and maturity and the season and harvest times. Oranges contain natural sugars like sucrose, fructose, glucose; organic acids like citric, malic, tartaric acid and flavouring compounds such as esters, ketones, alcohols etc. A prerequisite for initial high juice quality is the use of whole, undamaged oranges with low microbial populations.

Additives: some or none of the following may be added to orange juice; alpha tocopherol, EDTA, BHA and BHT may be added as antioxidants. Corn syrup, dextrose, honey and some artificial sweeteners may be added for sweetness. Citric acid can also be added to impart tartness. In some instances, manufacturers fortify the orange juice with Vitamin C and Calcium (in the form of tri-calcium phosphate) to improve its overall nutritional profile.

Making juice from concentrate

Juice from concentrate goes through a few more steps. Depending on the technique, the juice is either heated by steam so the water in the juice evaporates, or ‘ultra-filtrated’, and then concentrated using reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis is a purification process that uses a partially permeable membrane/filter to remove large unwanted particles by applying pressure.

To bring the concentrate back to its previous form, enough water is added to reconstitute the concentrated juice back to that of the undiluted juice from which it was made. The measurement of this is what we call standard brix. Finally, the juice is pasteurised before packaging.

Processing and Treatment Methods

Processing steps to stabilise orange juice with respect to enzyme and microbial activity are indispensable before bulk storage, packaging and distribution. An exception is the small quantity of freshly squeezed orange juice that is treated at very high pressure or packaged without any treatment at all.

Pasteurisation

Although orange juice has an acidic pH (around 4) which prevents the growth of spoilage microorganisms naturally, it still requires pasteurisation to retard spoilage and inactivate enzymes that may cause undesirable changes in the final product. Several methods are used in the industry for pasteurisation. Heating the juice at a temperature ranging from 85-94 °C for 30 seconds is adequate to reduce the microbial load.

High Pressure Processing (HPP)

Using pressure instead of heat or chemical preservatives, the HPP method ensures the safety and stability of the juice, retains the nutritional value and extends the refrigerated shelf life of juice, whilst maintaining the juices great taste and flavours.

The fresh juice is hermetically sealed in a sterile, bottle. (“hermetically sealed” means the bottle is completely airtight, which prevents oxygen, other gases, and airborne contaminants from getting inside and spoiling the juice.) Next, the bottles are loaded into a high-pressure processing machine. They’re placed within a special chamber called a “pressure vessel.” After all the bottles have been loaded, the pressure vessel is sealed with two plugs and braced with an industrial yoke. Then, the pressure vessel fills with cold water. The water is pressurised until it reaches 85,000 to 87,000 psi. This high pressure is uniformly applied to all juice bottles inside the pressure vessel. After the designated time, the vessel is depressurised. The bottles are unloaded, dried, inspected, and ready to drink. The process inactivates, eliminates or reduces any harmful enzymes or compounds that could spoil the juice.

Cold Pressed

Cold pressed juice is made from a hydraulic press, such as a cold-pressed juice machine that uses pressure to separate the fibrous parts of fruit from the juice of the orange. The juice is extracted using a slower process than centrifugal juicers and retains a higher nutritional value than other juices because the enzymes in the juice are not heated enough to break them down.

The term is actually something of a misnomer, as the procedure doesn't take place in a refrigerated environment or involve the use of cooling technology. Cold press processing reduces exposure to heat and oxygen during the production process, permitting high levels of taste and nutrient retention. It typically requires more time and produces a smaller yield than alternative methods.

While cold pressed juice offers several health benefits, it often has a short shelf life. Traditional heat treatment with pasteurisation would negate most of the benefits of cold press processing by reducing freshness and product nutritional integrity. To remove the microbes that cause spoilage and decrease product shelf life, most producers treat cold pressed juices with high-pressure processing (HPP), an alternative microbe removal process. It kills microbes and extends the shelf life of cold pressed items. Bottled juices that have undergone HPP have a 30 to 45-day shelf life.

Cold pressed juices subjected to HPP maintains most of the colour, taste, and feel of freshly squeezed products. The combination of cold pressing and HPP offer a way to bring customers nutrient-rich juices with shelf lives that allow for complex production processes and wider distribution ranges.

Processing considerations to maximize juice product quality

At the fruit processor

Choice of orange fruit
Short holding time in the fruit bins before extraction to prevent deterioration of fruit
Fruit washing and grading
Fruit sizing
Optimal extractor pressure and correct finisher settings to avoid unwanted (often bitter) compounds in fruit from entering the juice

At the juice packer

Preventing air contact during the processing phase
Water quality
Short holding time for juice prior to pasteurisation (or other treatment method) to minimise microbial growth and vitamin C degradation
Use of correct temperatures during pasteurisation and filling
Package integrity
Storage conditions

Raw Materials – the Oranges

The primary ingredient is of course, oranges. The quality of the fruit is important for the characteristics of the final orange juice product. Usually, a blend of different varieties of oranges, namely Valencias, are used to give the juice a pleasant flavour, free from bitterness. The selection of fruit is based on the breed and maturity and the season and harvest times. Oranges contain natural sugars like sucrose, fructose, glucose; organic acids like citric, malic, tartaric acid and flavouring compounds such as esters, ketones, alcohols etc. A prerequisite for initial high juice quality is the use of whole, undamaged oranges with low microbial populations.

Additives: some or none of the following may be added to orange juice; alpha tocopherol, EDTA, BHA and BHT may be added as antioxidants. Corn syrup, dextrose, honey and some artificial sweeteners may be added for sweetness. Citric acid can also be added to impart tartness. In some instances, manufacturers fortify the orange juice with Vitamin C and Calcium (in the form of tri-calcium phosphate) to improve its overall nutritional profile.

Making juice from concentrate

Juice from concentrate goes through a few more steps. Depending on the technique, the juice is either heated by steam so the water in the juice evaporates, or ‘ultra-filtrated’, and then concentrated using reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis is a purification process that uses a partially permeable membrane/filter to remove large unwanted particles by applying pressure.

To bring the concentrate back to its previous form, enough water is added to reconstitute the concentrated juice back to that of the undiluted juice from which it was made. The measurement of this is what we call standard brix. Finally, the juice is pasteurised before packaging.

Processing and Treatment Methods

Processing steps to stabilise orange juice with respect to enzyme and microbial activity are indispensable before bulk storage, packaging and distribution. An exception is the small quantity of freshly squeezed orange juice that is treated at very high pressure or packaged without any treatment at all.

Pasteurisation

Although orange juice has an acidic pH (around 4) which prevents the growth of spoilage microorganisms naturally, it still requires pasteurisation to retard spoilage and inactivate enzymes that may cause undesirable changes in the final product. Several methods are used in the industry for pasteurisation. Heating the juice at a temperature ranging from 85-94 °C for 30 seconds is adequate to reduce the microbial load.

High Pressure Processing (HPP)

Using pressure instead of heat or chemical preservatives, the HPP method ensures the safety and stability of the juice, retains the nutritional value and extends the refrigerated shelf life of juice, whilst maintaining the juices great taste and flavours.

The fresh juice is hermetically sealed in a sterile, bottle. (“hermetically sealed” means the bottle is completely airtight, which prevents oxygen, other gases, and airborne contaminants from getting inside and spoiling the juice.) Next, the bottles are loaded into a high-pressure processing machine. They’re placed within a special chamber called a “pressure vessel.” After all the bottles have been loaded, the pressure vessel is sealed with two plugs and braced with an industrial yoke. Then, the pressure vessel fills with cold water. The water is pressurised until it reaches 85,000 to 87,000 psi. This high pressure is uniformly applied to all juice bottles inside the pressure vessel. After the designated time, the vessel is depressurised. The bottles are unloaded, dried, inspected, and ready to drink. The process inactivates, eliminates or reduces any harmful enzymes or compounds that could spoil the juice.

Cold Pressed

Cold pressed juice is made from a hydraulic press, such as a cold-pressed juice machine that uses pressure to separate the fibrous parts of fruit from the juice of the orange. The juice is extracted using a slower process than centrifugal juicers and retains a higher nutritional value than other juices because the enzymes in the juice are not heated enough to break them down.

The term is actually something of a misnomer, as the procedure doesn't take place in a refrigerated environment or involve the use of cooling technology. Cold press processing reduces exposure to heat and oxygen during the production process, permitting high levels of taste and nutrient retention. It typically requires more time and produces a smaller yield than alternative methods.

While cold pressed juice offers several health benefits, it often has a short shelf life. Traditional heat treatment with pasteurisation would negate most of the benefits of cold press processing by reducing freshness and product nutritional integrity. To remove the microbes that cause spoilage and decrease product shelf life, most producers treat cold pressed juices with high-pressure processing (HPP), an alternative microbe removal process. It kills microbes and extends the shelf life of cold pressed items. Bottled juices that have undergone HPP have a 30 to 45-day shelf life.

Cold pressed juices subjected to HPP maintains most of the colour, taste, and feel of freshly squeezed products. The combination of cold pressing and HPP offer a way to bring customers nutrient-rich juices with shelf lives that allow for complex production processes and wider distribution ranges.

Processor Profiles

Nippy's Juice

The installation of an AsepTec linear filler in 2018 has allowed the family-owned Nippy’s at Moorook, South Australia, to produce long-life juices that closely mirror fresh juice in both flavour and appearance.

In a game-changing decision, these varieties - orange, cloudy apple, blood orange and pink grapefruit - now have a potential shelf-life of at least a year and can be exported and placed in the chilled section alongside fresh juices.

Now in its 54th year of manufacturing, Nippy’s has been processing long-life juice and flavoured milk since the mid-1980s. With about 300ha of orchard the Knispels currently provide 20-25 per cent of their own juicing requirements.

The machinery in the Nippy’s factory was becoming quite old so the company had to consider either buying the next generation of filling machine or maybe deleting the product.
In the end Jeff and the team decided that rather than simply replace like with like they would invest in a major upgrade.

Their research showed that a plastic bottle would be the favoured container for this type of product for the next few years.

They decided if they could find a PET filler that would not only produce a long-life product but also do more than one sized packaging, they could explore possibilities other than just the one-litre market.

The Knispels’ new equipment fills a sterile pack with a sterile produce within a sterile environment.

The bottle itself also has certain barrier properties, which means that a premium not-from-concentrate juice can have a significantly longer shelf-life while keeping the transparent PET bottle with a single-stage, tamper-evident cap that consumers are accustomed to seeing for fresh juice.

In the case of Nippy’s, breaking with tradition by introducing a new container type was the impetus for elevating the product into a higher value category.

Because they were starting something new, Nippy’s asked their customers in Japan to treat it as a cool-chain product.

It’s cold-pressed from chilled fruit and cold-filled. Nippy’s sea-freight it refrigerated and their Japanese customers warehouse it refrigerated.

It goes into refrigeration in the retail outlets – the dairy cabinet as opposed to the dry grocery aisles.

Not only does this preserve the fresh flavour and appearance of the product but it also creates a perception with consumers that if it’s with the yoghurts, cheeses and milk it must be a fresh product, too.

Grove Juice

Grove Juice is not a big corporation but one of the few remaining Australian family-owned fresh juice processors in the country. Grove are not just processors but are unique in that they are farmers too.

Grove has been crafting naturally healthy and delicious juice since 1969.

Growing up in rural Australia, Grove owner and managing director, the Estens and Quinn family, share in the same principles of being open and honest in all that we do.

In saying that it’s quite the task producing the freshest quality juices year-round, a responsibility that is not taken lightly. Meeting those expectations every day is important to the company.

To consistently supply a range of fresh juices year-round for their customers and consumers, Grove sources fruit not only from their own farms but from Aussie farmers all over the country. T
he varieties, the health benefits, how they’re grown, the right time to plant and pick and how they are squeezed daily.

Grove has 150 people working across multiple farms and factories in NSW and Queensland.

In the Store

Look Behind the Label – what it all means

The gold star standard, as far as we are concerned, is juice made from all Australian oranges. Take the time to look behind the label to see the percentage of Australian ingredients in your bottle of juice.

There are several variations of messaging that you’ll see on labels; grown in, produced in, made in, from at least …% Australian ingredients or Australian owned, made from imported ingredients, made in Australia from imported ingredients or all manner of combinations of the above.

We’re in the business of supporting and promoting Australian juice, with fruit grown in Australia and bottled in Australia, so look for this label or as near to it as you can get.

The Retail Shelves

Navigating the shelves looking for the juice that best suits your needs can be a bit daunting with so many brands and so many messages; no added sugar, not made from concentrate, reconstituted, cold pressed, pulp, pulp free, double pulp, fruit drink, unsweetened etc.

Juice - the purest form of Australian Juice will be described as follows;

Label may say:

100% juice
No sugar added

The types of juice in the bottle will be listed in order of descending amounts.

Juice Drinks - fruit drinks contain a lower juice content than fruit juices and the juice content is between 5% and <96% juice. Juice drinks are made from juice concentrate which has been reconstituted with water, as well as additional water, and might include other ingredients such as sweeteners and flavourings. Lower juice content and additional ingredients distinguish juice drinks from juice with no added sugar.

These fruit juices are made from whole fruit that is pressed or squeezed to extract the juice, and typically do not contain added sugars. Only drinks that contain 100% juice may be labelled as such.

Concentrated juice simply means that the water has been extracted from the juice to make storage easier. Water is added back in before drinking. There is no difference nutritionally between juice from concentrate and other types of 100% juice.

Label may say:

Reconstituted
Made from concentrate
Concentrated juice
From concentrate

Juice Health and Nutrition

A serving of juice with no added sugar, according to the Australian Dietary Guidelines, is 125mL.

The Australian Dietary Guidelines state that an occasional 125ml glass of fruit juice with no added sugar is equivalent to one serve of fruit. Without juice, many Australians would not consume their recommended daily intake of fruit.

100% orange juice is a natural product; it is just fruit that has been juiced, with nothing added or taken away. Water makes up about 90% of 100% orange juice with the remainder consisting of natural sugars from the fruit, vitamin C, folate, potassium and other vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients such as hesperidin.

Goodness for Mind and Body

There are just so many choices out there in the drinks category; smoothies, water, kombucha, flavoured milks, soft drinks, infused spritzers, fruit and vegetable juice blends and on it goes. Orange juice has seen off many of the fad drinks that come and go. Why, because fundamentally it tastes great and is good for you, is a natural product and is grown right here in Australia by dedicated citrus growers. A chilled, orange juice with no added sugar is unbeatable.

Fruit Facts: Orange Juice

Half a cup of orange juice provides more than 100% of daily Vitamin C needs and over a quarter of daily folate needs*. It also contains a broad range of bioactive compounds including polyphenol antioxidants and carotenoids. These nutrients are not commonly found in many other beverages available on supermarket shelves.
100% orange juice provides one of the greatest food sources of flavonoids (a type of beneficial antioxidant). In Australia, fresh fruit juice provides nearly half the dietary flavonoid needs for Australian adolescents who are at a critical stage of growth and brain development.
100% orange juice is not only packed full of nutrients and bioactive (in similar levels to whole fruits), but they are highly bioavailable too.
For people who don’t eat enough fruit in their diet but enjoy no added sugar fruit juices, 100% orange juice is a great way to make sure your body gets a good dose of health-promoting nutrients and bioactive compounds.

*Folate needs just before and during pregnancy are much higher

	Av QTY Per serve	%DI*	Av QTY per 100g
Moisture	118g		94g
Energy	146kJ	2%	117kJ
Protein	1.0g	2%	0.8g
Total fat	0g	0%	0g
Saturated fat	0g	0%	0g
Total Carbohydrates	7.1g	2%	5.7g
Sugars	7.1g	8%	5.7g
Sodium	3.8mg	<1%	3.0mg
Thiamin	0.1mg	13%	0.12mg
Folate eq	66.3ug	33%	53ug
Vitamin C	90mg	225%	72mg
Total polyphenols^	75mg		60mg
Hesperidin^^^	2.96mg		1.97mg
Beta-carotene eq	19ug		15ug
Glycemic Index (GI) ^^	51

Sustainability in the Juicing Sector

From local growers to global juice processors, the growers producing the fruit to the companies involved in the making, packaging, and transporting of juice are dedicated environmental stewards, continuously implementing measures to minimise environmental impact while optimising production.

The Whole Crop

Whilst some growers grow specifically to supply the juice sector, other growers may grow a variety of citrus types. If the fruit grown is destined for the retail market, to be sold as whole piece of fruit either domestically or for export, the fruit will leave the orchard and be sent to a packing shed where it is sorted into grades. The grades include first class, second class, composite, or juicing (fact check). Fruit that falls into the juicing category may have superficial markings, defects or be too small. This fruit is then sent to a processor for juicing.

In accordance with the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) the labelling provisions, in orange juice, the name and percentage of each juice in a juice blend is not required, provided it contains no more than 10% in total of:
(a) mandarin juice; or
(b) tangelo juice; or
(c) mandarin juice and tangelo juice.

What this means is that the juice industry provides an outlet for fruit that may otherwise be discarded. Whilst this only makes up a fraction of the total juicing fruit amount, it illustrates the importance of the juice sector to the overall citrus industry and further enhances its sustainability credentials.

Chemical and Land Use

It is every growers objective to lower chemical use and dependance and adopt and promote a systems approach to encourage beneficial pests. The development of an Australian citrus industry integrated pest management manual helps growers determine the best course of action to minimise chemical use whilst producing a healthy and vibrant crop that meets Australian and export markets maximum chemical residue levels.

Maintaining and improving soil health is of paramount importance to all growers. Ongoing efforts to enhance and improve land use will help to:

improve drought and risk resilience

reverse land degradation
improve biodiversity, soil fertility and soil moisture through improving pastures & trees
developing wildlife corridors
stop sediment loss use a system of minimum tillage and keeping a mulch blanket intact between rows
capture data to track micronutrients and potential deficiencies, monitoring of soil carbon and soil health
identify onsite re-vegetation options

Water Management

Water is a critical component of the juice life cycle. From farm to fridge, members of the industry continue to demonstrate a responsibility toward managing water resources diligently.
On farm, technology helps growers to conserve water use. Systems that monitor soil moisture, automatic irrigation timers, efficient drip irrigation, and water recovery systems are among the innovations being implemented. Work is also being undertaken in relation to breeding improvements to produce water tolerant varieties.

Many juice processors meter and analyse water use in their facilities to achieve improved efficiencies. Some companies are also using the wastewater from juice processing for purposes such as crop irrigation or in cooling towers, thus reducing freshwater intake.

Waste Reduction and By Products

The juice industry supports a circular economy in which materials are used and then reused. Juice makers recycle or compost the bulk of by-products from juice processing. In most instances, the spent orange skins, are sent to cattle properties and fed to cattle as a diet supplement. They love them.

Orange oil - is an essential oil produced by cells within the rind of an orange fruit. In contrast to most essential oils, it is extracted as a by-product of orange juice production by centrifugation, producing a cold-pressed oil. Orange oil has had many domestic uses, from aromatherapy to skincare, haircare and household cleaning. To produce 100% pure orange oil, the cold pressing method is used. This is essentially done using substantial pressure to extract oil from the fruit rind of the orange fruit. In various cases the leaves and flowers from the citrus sinensis plant species can be used as well.

Orange Pulp – some people love pulp, others, not so much. Excess pulp is used across a number of applications, adding value, nutrients, flavour and fibre to a range of food products including yoghurt, ice cream, dairy desserts and bakery items.

Packaging

A vital component of the juice product that enables the juice to be made, stored, transported, sold and consumed whilst at the same time protecting the product from spoilage, degradation and preserving the life of the product, thereby minimising wastage.

Key points of consideration and areas for improvement relating to packaging materials and types include:

waste minimisation and light weighting - working with packaging suppliers to reduce the input materials, without compromising on product integrity and ensuring it’s fit for purpose
increasing the recycled content for all packaging materials to a minimum of 50% post-consumer recyclate in both paper/board, glass and plastic materials (thereby reducing the reliance on the use of virgin material) and print on-pack to promote the effort of using recycled material and the recyclability of the packaging
utilise only packaging materials that have a viable and commercial recycling stream i.e., cardboard, glass, PET, HDPE and reduce/eliminate coated materials, co-extruded plastics, expanded polystyrene etc., which make recycling difficult as they contaminate the recycling stream
promote and endorse waste capture and recycling and the conversion of these waste materials back into new end use materials, thereby reducing waste to landfill and reprocessing and reusing a valuable resource that can be used many times over

Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy

Juice companies are implementing a broad range of initiatives to reduce energy use. Several companies have conducted energy audits to pinpoint opportunities for improvement and have set specific targets for energy reduction.

To reach these goals, juice makers are replacing equipment with newer, more energy efficient technology; converting lighting systems and expanding the use of LEDs and improving processes such as inventory control to reduce the amount of space that needs to be lighted, heated or cooled.

Processors and growers are also looking toward alternative and renewable fuel sources that include but also go beyond solar and wind.

Juice

The Importance of Juice

Ready to join?

Growing Juicing Oranges

Valencia Orange Overview

Growing Juicing Oranges

Grower Profiles

Robert Hoddle

Justin Davidson

Processing Juice

Processing for Juice

What does ‘from concentrate’ mean?

What does ‘not from concentrate’ mean?

Key Steps

Processing considerations to maximize juice product quality

Raw Materials – the Oranges

Making juice from concentrate

Processing and Treatment Methods

Processing considerations to maximize juice product quality

Raw Materials – the Oranges

Making juice from concentrate

Processing and Treatment Methods

Processor Profiles

Nippy's Juice

Grove Juice

In the Store

Look Behind the Label – what it all means

The Retail Shelves

Juice Health and Nutrition

Goodness for Mind and Body

Fruit Facts: Orange Juice

Nutrition Information

Sustainability in the Juicing Sector

The Whole Crop

Chemical and Land Use

Water Management

Waste Reduction and By Products

Packaging

Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy

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