Natalie’s Featured on FreshPlaza

3/29/13 – By: Carlos Nunez, FreshPlaza – For Natalie’s Orchid Island Juice Company, one of the keys to making orange juice for almost a quarter of a century has had to do with the primary inputs, noted Marketing Coordinator Sara Ciccarelli. Choosing fruit that yields the best juice is key, and it results in juice with a naturally sweet taste due to the fruit’s high sugar content.

“We don’t add anything to our juice, the sugar in Natalie’s is just natural sugar from the fruit,” said Ciccarelli. She credited Florida’s tropical climate with providing the ideal environment for growing the fruit they use for their juices. The groves from which the fruit is sourced produce fruit which, like much of Florida’s orange crop, is grown specifically for juicing.

“The fruit we squeeze is best for squeezing,” explained Ciccarelli. “It has a higher level of brix which is the natural sugar in the fruit, and though it may not look as pretty as the fruit from California, which is normally eaten, it’s ideal for our juice.”

One of the issues that they, like everyone else in the citrus industry, have to contend with is citrus greening. “Greening does have an effect on the quality of the juice. We eliminate all fruit that exhibits greening characteristics in order to prevent bitter juice,” says John Martinelli, Executive Vice President of the company. With more greening, more fruit will be discarded, and that has the potential to cut into supplies. Ciccarelli noted that it’s just one of the issues that they have to deal with.

“Weather, disease and urbanization constantly keep us on our toes,” she said. “Because it’s an ever-changing environment.”

Their juice is currently distributed to over 20 countries and throughout the United States. It’s available to restaurants, hotels, wholesalers and retailers throughout the US.