Release date 04/07/2008
YONKERS, NY — Consumer Reports has decoded juice-label lingo to help consumers buy what they intend and avoid added sugars and artificial ingredients.
Some CR readers say that they have been fooled by juice plucked off store shelves—including a recently discontinued Ocean Spray juice labeled “blueberry, pomegranate, and cranberry,” which listed grape and apple juice first on the label; a Sunny D product labeled “orange fused pineapple” that contained mostly water and high-fructose corn syrup with 5 percent juice, none of it pineapple; and a bottle of Veryfine Fruit20 Plus Citrus Energy Boost, since discontinued, composed of artificially flavored water, vitamins, and caffeine.
The full report on juice-label lingo is available in the May issue of Consumer Reports, on sale April 8 and online at www.ConsumerReports.org.
Here are some basics compiled by Consumer Reports’ experts to help consumers understand what’s in the juice they’re buying:
CR recommends that consumers should choose “100% juice,” but to check the ingredients for the listing of the juice they are looking for. Ingredients appear in descending order of weight. To save calories or money, consumers can dilute 100 percent juice with chilled water or seltzer.