The problem with cold-pressed juice

The real cost of the juicing fad? Food waste. Tons of it.

Linked with fasting, “cleanses,” and the raw-food movement, these fruit and vegetable drinks continue to skyrocket in popularity, whether made-to-order like mine or bottled, pressure treated, and refrigerated for purchase within a few weeks. Such a short shelf life contributes to sky-high prices, which a certain demographic is more than willing to pay. Projected 2015 sales of bottled cold-pressed juices exceed $400 million. That’s nearly 15 times 2010’s actuals...

Because cold-pressed juices are squished, rather than shredded by blades, they may contain more of certain vitamins (like A and C) and bioactive phytochemicals (like carotenoids) than their mass-produced, heat-pasteurized counterparts. Compare sipping a green juice to simply eating greens, though, and it’s a different story: “Juices lose fiber and the nutrients attached to that fiber,” explains Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University. Moreover, one 16-ounce serving of cold-pressed fruit juice can contain twice as many calories as 2 cups of raw vegetables.

That same serving of juice generates up to 4.5 pounds of pulp, depending on the ingredients. So where does all the leftover cucumber, mint, kale, apple, and carrot go? In the worst nightmare of a zero-waste zealot, straight to a landfill. There, the pulp rots and generates methane.

Further details at Modern Farmer.



Photo credit Mike Mozart, via Wikipedia.