3 Lies of Everfresh Grape Juice
I just reviewed two Everfresh punches of Sundance Beverage Company (MI, 48091 USA) and I had no intention to write another article about their juices which, I assumed, were perfectly safe to drink as far as you watch your carbs. But it was wrong assumption; yesterday I have found artificial colorants Red 40 azo dye and Blue 1 aniline dye in Everfresh Grape, claimed as 100% juice. I decided to investigate what is behind this. Previously I have detected artificial colorants even in dried fruits! You cannot trust anyone anymore… But you can trust the DyeDiet. Here is my new story.
Stated value
- “Thank you for buying Everfresh. We blend our beverages using the most wholesome all natural juices available, which is why Everfresh guarantees a fresh taste every time. With pride, the folks of Everfresh.”
- Everfresh Grape; Natural Flavor; Fresh Taste Guaranteed; Excellent Source of 100% Vitamin C. Juice Cocktail From Concentrate (you can barely see the latter text…).
- On the back you read: 100% juice; 130 calories and 31 g of sugars per serving (250 calories and 62 g of sugars per container).
- No preservatives added
Real value
DyeDiet Doesn’t Buy It!
Everfresh Grape: Risk, Nutrition and Dye Content
If you decide to enjoy this juice you will have to deal with unacceptable foreign chemical risk of DDFI = 20/7 ~ 2.9 and you will get miserable nutritional value of DDNF = 7/28 ~ 0.25. Read Behavior, Learning and Health: The Dietary Connection; Food Dyes: A Rainbow of Risks and watch The Drugging of our Children (video, 2005) to find out how artificial colorants may ruin your and your children’s health.
Lie # 1: Grape; 100% juice
They sell apple juice to you under the name “grape.” The critical ingredients are:
- Water
- Apple juice concentrate
- Grape juice concentrate
- Natural flavor and
- Artificial colorants
The question is: Why would one want to add red and blue dyes to a “most wholesome all natural” grape juice? Possible explanation is this. Apple juice is the cheapest one. So, the manufacturer has formulated the Everfresh Grape with mostly apple juice and only a small portion of a grape juice added. Because apple juice is almost colorless, the manufacturer dumped 70 mg of Red 40 and 1 mg of Blue 1 (read Blue colon at autopsy) per bottle for you to believe that you drink a grape juice.
Lie # 2: Natural flavor
The natural flavor was synthesized in a chemical plant. While Methyl Anthranilate naturally occurs in grapes and some other plants it is much cheaper to make it from petrochemicals (e.g., from toluene). A synthetic substance does not always mean toxic but it is artificial, even if it is identical to the original natural product. However, this fact does not prevent food manufacturers from claiming “natural flavor.”
Lie # 3: No preservatives added
Citric acid is the added preservative. Citric acid is naturally occurring substance which plays important role in biochemistry of many organisms including humans (see Citric acid cycle). It is also widely used as a food preservative. Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) is another added natural preservative. The upper intake level for Vitamin C is ~ 2 g per day.
By the way, here is another recent story of the kind: The 6 Most Horrifying Lies The Food Industry is Feeding You.
Better choices
Plain water is always a better choice, but I agree that we all want some fun drink once in a while. Surprisingly, you can find safer choices right next to the Everfresh Grape. But to succeed you have to understand extremely confusing food industry’s language. When you read “grape; natural flavor” the translation is “denatured.” Why? Because if your products are “the most wholesome all natural juices available,” you don’t need to add flavors. Even cowardly statement “100% juice” on the back doesn’t worth much. This means you look at some kind of fake. But when is says “pure 100% orange juice; all natural” and again “100% juice” on the back then maybe you are looking at a real juice. Maybe…
Everfresh Orange Juice: I don't like its taste
To be sure read the ingredient list. I have read and I tried this juice and I didn’t like the taste. And, above all, I don’t trust the sloppy Sundance Beverage Company and their ridiculous Everfreshes. My point is: filtered water is eversafer and everhealthier choice!
Category: Food Dyes Exposure, Juices, Soft drinks
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This much sugar is equal to 2 cans of whipped cream.
Good observation!
I’ve been wondering about these 100% juices. Whenever I had a glass of pure 100%, I’d find myself feeling tired and exhausted and sometimes would have to lie down from fatigue. Now I read they remove the oxygen from the juice to preserve it for a year. Already I live in a hill station with less oxygen in the air. I quit the juices because of the fatigue they generated and for several years. Recently I was tempted into buying 100% orange juice again…it seemed not to have too much of an adverse effect. Then there was no OJ at the store so I went in for 100% grape. After the first glass, I had horrific sneezes and the sniffles….so I boiled the juice thinking maybe it had some flu germs and I did not want to waste it (it’s quite expensive here in India) Well I survived the 2nd glass okay but the third day, I had horrific acidity up to my throat and palpitations and dire fatigue…so I checked up the net and found out how un 100% these juices all are… I’m back to making my own home made juices and will be careful to use just a couple of fruit at a time…Thanks for the advice…diabetes is heavy in my family and I certainly would like to avoid it And you are right…when I’m low on energy, plain water from my borewell perks me up right away.