While the majority of people probably think of coffee when they imagine a morning beverage, the rest of us probably think of orange juice. Orange juice is a great way to start your day. Refreshing, delicious, nice and cold. Yummy.
But which brand of OJ is the best?
That is exactly what we are going to find out on today’s episode of Quest for the Best.
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Which brands of Orange Juice are we trying today?
Tropicana
Minute Maid
Simply Orange
Great Value
Florida’s Natural
Who is on this juicy quest?
Kris, is that a stroke?
Hannah, volunteers as tribute.
Matt, defective sweet-o-meter.
Amy, allergic to something.
And of course, our subscribers! Thanks to our small, yet coveted group. We appreciate the support. You too can join us on this food journey. All you need to do is… SUBSCRIBE!
The History of Orange Juice
Want to know a little bit about Orange Juice? Well, then you need to know a little bit about the importance of marketing. You see, drinking orange juice is really a more recent thing. In the earlier 1900’s people were not really drinking it at all. That was a problem for orange producers, specifically the California Fruit Growers Exchange. Desperate for profits, they decided to hire Albert Lasker to get people to consume more orange juice. And he did.
Step one: renaming the California Fruit Growers Exchange to Sunkist.
Step two: launching the “Drink an Orange” campaign.
Step three: pairing the campaign with a 10 cent “Sunkist OJ extractor”, aka: a juicer.
Step four: profit.
And indeed there was profit. Orange consumption skyrocketed.
Want another piece of marketing that helped orange juice gain more popularity? Well, look no further than the ailment, acidosis. In the 1920s, nutrition personality Elmer McCollum popularized the ailment that he said resulted from eating too many “acid-producing” foods, such as bread and milk. How do you fix this horrible ailment? By consuming more lettuce and… you guessed it… citrus. And the industry ran with it. Here is an excerpt from a Sunkist pamphlet.
“Estelle seemed to lack vitality; didn’t even make an effort to be entertaining; hence, she did not attract the men…. ‘Acidosis’ is the word on almost every modern physician’s tongue”
So what is the cure for this terrible, men repelling affliction? The consumption of oranges. And do not worry, there is no such thing as too many oranges, but too few? You are in for a world of loneliness and drabness.
In 2023 the leading brands of refrigerated orange juice in the United States based on sales are…
Tropicana - 969.11 million dollars
Simply - 887.17 million dollars
Private label - 759.07 million dollars
Florida’s Natural - 315.7 million dollars
Minute Maid - 115.18 million dollars
The Results
**SPOILER ALERT!**
Listen to the episode first if you do not want the results revealed to you yet!
Subscribed
5th/4th Place: Tropicana
Amy - 2
Hannah - 7
Kris - 4
Matt - 5
4th/5th Place: Great Value
Amy - 4
Hannah - 7
Kris - 4
Matt - 3
3rd Place: Florida’s Natural
Amy - 4
Hannah - 7
Kris - 6
Matt - 6
2nd Place: Minute Maid
Amy - 8
Hannah - 7
Kris - 7
Matt - 5
1st Place: Simply Orange
Amy - 5
Hannah - 8
Kris - 8
Matt - 7
There you have it. Simply Orange receives the Quest for the Best seal of approval.
Thank you all for joining us on this episode of Quest for the Best. Let us know what you thought. Which is your favorite brand of orange juice? Are you a pulp or no pulp person? We would love to hear your rating!
Also, do you have any foods you would love to get the coveted seal of approval? Let us know in the comments what you want to hear next.
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Show Notes:
https://medium.com/lessons-from-history/history-of-orange-juice-958fbeb7ad66
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20220627-how-orange-juice-took-over-the-breakfast-table
Episode 127: Orange Juice