Colorado State University Extension
SafeFood Rapid Response Network
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Juice Safety: What's to Drink?
Edited by: Stephanie Wallner, M.S., Mary Schroeder, M.S., R.D, Pat Kendall, Ph.D., R.D., Colorado State - Fall 2006
Fruit and vegetable juices are not commonly considered "high risk products." However, without pasteurization or other adequate treatment, juice products can be unsafe and may contain bacteria such as E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella that can cause serious illness. Juices can be contaminated from bacteria on the outside of the fruit that get into the finished product and grow there. Some of these bacteria, such as E. coli O157:H7, can be quite resilient in acidic conditions and survive for long periods in the acidic environment that juices provide.
Pasteurization is a process designed to destroy any bacteria, yeast and mold spores that may be present in raw juices. Roughly 98% of juices and juice drinks sold in the United States have been pasteurized and thus are safe to drink. However, unpasteurized juices are also available on the market and have been indicated in some recent outbreaks of foodborne illness. For example, a 1996 multi-state outbreak of E. coli infection was linked to untreated apple juice; an outbreak of Cryptosporidium infection in 2003 was linked to inadequately treated apple cider. A more recent outbreak of Salmonella infection in 2005 was linked to inadequately treated orange juice labeled as "fresh squeezed."
Based on results of a study that found contamination of juices can occur at any point in the growing, harvesting, packaging and delivery stages, the Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) developed regulations in 1997 requiring juice producers follow a HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) plan to ensure all stages of production are safe. According to these requirements, juice treatment procedures must achieve a 5-log (100,000-fold) reduction in bacteria that will last as long as the shelf life of the juice when stored under normal conditions.
With so many juice choices on the market today, it is important to understand the types of treatments used to achieve this 5-log reduction in bacteria. Pasteurization is the process by which juice is heated to a very high temperature for a short period of time before being placed on the market. This process kills pathogens that may be present. The production of frozen juice concentrate also includes a heat treatment that is equivalent to pasteurization. Fresh juices that have been pasteurized will be labeled as such and can be found in refrigerated sections of grocery stores. These juices need to remain refrigerated after they are purchased and taken home. "Treated" juices also have been processed to achieve a 5-log reduction in bacteria, but with a different system such as UV irradiation or Ultra High Temperature (UHT) processes. UHT treated juices are often packaged in airtight containers such as non-refrigerated boxes, bottles and cans to make them shelf stable.
In contrast, untreated or "raw" juices have not had any treatment to destroy harmful bacteria. Untreated juices, such as apple cider, are commonly sold refrigerated in health food specialty stores or at farmer's markets. As mandated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), these juices must carry a warning label stating that the juice is not pasteurized and may contain illness-causing bacteria.
As with other high-risk foods, it is important that children, elderly persons, and other immune-compromised persons avoid drinking untreated juices. The FDA and CDC recommend that immune-compromised persons avoid drinking any juices not clearly labeled or not known to have been treated to kill pathogens. To avoid the risk of foodborne illness, all consumers should carefully read juice containers and avoid buying juice products that have not been adequately treated.
Sources:
- Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN). http://www.cfsan.fda.gov. Accessed January 2006.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preventing health risks associated with drinking unpasteurized or untreated juice. http://www.cdc.gov. Accessed January 2006.
- Food Labeling: Warning and Notice Statement: Labeling of Juice Products Final Rule. Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration. Federal Register: July 8, 1998: 63(130); 37029-37056. Available at the Federal Register Online via GPO Access http://wais.access.gpo.gov or http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/fr98708a.html.
