1How much fruit and vegetables should we eat per day?
According to the recommendations of the World Health Organization, we should eat at least 400 g of fruit and vegetables daily. Of course, nothing prevents more of these products in our diet, and even more servings are recommended. 400 g per day is the minimum.
2What is a serving? Can we clarify this?
One serving is about 80-100 g. A serving will be an apple, a pear, a few small carrots, a handful of raspberries, a few strawberries, a few radishes. One portion of vegetables and fruit during the day can be replaced with a portion of juice, i.e. a glass of fruit, vegetable or fruit and vegetable juice (200 ml).
3Can a glass of juice be one of the five servings of vegetables and fruit recommended by the World Health Organization?
Yes, it can! At this point, we must emphasize that this recommendation does not exclude bottled juices with a longer shelf life, unfairly considered by some groups as less valuable.
4How is it possible that the juice from the bottle can be considered a portion of vegetables or fruit?
Because juice is a food product that, regardless of the shelf life, is always made of fresh, chilled or frozen ripe fruit. In our region, juice production is subject to strict restrictions and is strictly regulated by the European Union.
5Are sugars or other additives added to the juices?
According to the regulations, no manufacturer in the European Union, including Poland, can add preservatives, artificial flavors or artificial colors to juices. Simply put - they can not add any sugars to 100% juices. Some companies, using various marketing tricks, try to circumvent these provisions, so it is worth getting to know the ingredients of the product. If a beautiful label informs us that the product is 100% juice and the ingredients include, for example, sugars of non-natural origin, it is a fraudulent crime.
6What color or taste should the juice have?
The color and taste of the juices come from the fruits and vegetables from which it was produced. Juice should not be confused with other drinking products, which unfortunately is often the case. The inscription "juice" on the packaging strongly defines what is inside. This is precisely regulated by law.
7Does the juicing process deprive them of their nutritional value?
This is another myth, unfortunately very harmful to our society. The juice production process used today is e.g. the pasteurization. Its purpose is to ensure the microbiological safety of the product, i.e. the destruction of microorganisms that, if left in the juice, will lead to a natural spoilage process. But this process does not significantly reduce the nutritional value of the juices.
8Is there a difference between the type of juice packaging? Does this affect their quality?
Regardless of the packaging, juices are a source of valuable vitamins, micro and macro elements, biologically active substances and fiber. And it is definitely a good thing if we reach for a glass of vegetable, fruit or mixed vegetable and fruit juice once a day. It can be an addition to a meal, e.g. a traditional breakfast or a healthy snack during the day.
9Is daily or freshly squeezed juice better than longer shelf life juices?
This is not true because it really all depends on the type of fruit and vegetables the juice is made of, their quality and nutritional value, which is always comparable in both pasteurized and unpasteurized juice.
10What is better - one-day or pasteurized juice?
One-day juice will be safe only if we provide it with uninterrupted refrigeration. It is best if it is drunk right after removing it from the refrigerator and reaching room temperature. After longer storage of one-day juice outside cooling conditions, multiplication of microorganisms takes place. Pasteurized juices have the same properties as daily juices, their advantage lies in the longer shelf life.
11 Is freshly squeezed juice safe and good to eat?
In the case of freshly squeezed juice in various restaurants and shopping malls, pay attention to the conditions in which it was made. The cleanliness of juicers in cafes and restaurants is very important. Juice extracted from a dirty juicer can pose a health risk. It is also always worth paying attention to whether the fruit and vegetables from which the juice is made are of good quality and whether they have been washed well. The problem, however, is that in most cases we know nothing about the cleanliness of the juicer or the fruit from which the juice is squeezed. Therefore, the purchase of a good juice, e.g. 100% puree juice, gives us a guarantee of quality through the regulations that the Manufacturer must follow, and at the time of purchase, we ourselves decide on many factors, such as storage temperature, etc.
12What to choose - freshly pressed juice, one-day juice or pasteurized 100% puree juice?
Juices with a longer shelf life are the same wholesome products. In terms of the content of vitamins and nutrients, they do not differ from the one-day and freshly pressed ones. In a situation where we are not sure about the quality of freshly pressed juice and we are unable to store the juice in the refrigerator, 100% puree juice from a bottle is certainly a good solution for delivering a portion of fruit.