The fruits and vegetables from which Juice Plus+ is made are grown in a variety
of locations best suited in soil and climate to each particular fruit or
vegetable. Juice Plus+ makes every effort to source and use the highest quality,
vine-ripened fruits and vegetables available. Organic produce is used whenever
possible.
Having been several times to
the facility where Juice Plus+ is encapsulated
and seen the lab where quality is tested, it's my opinion that Juice Plus+ is
'better than organic'. The produce, the juice and the resulting powders are all
tested to be free of any measurable amount of herbicides, pesticides and other
toxic chemicals; in fact, every toxin known to man, including e-choli. All
testing is performed to US Food and Drug Administration standards.
Even organic produce is permitted to contain measurable levels of toxic
chemicals.
Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the
conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future
generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals
that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones. Organic food is produced
without using most conventional pesticides;
fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or
ionizing radiation. Before a product can be labeled "organic," a
Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make
sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic
standards. Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your
local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too." [This is from the
USDA's website .... note use of the word most!] There are separate
tolerance levels established by the USDA for different produce, and some are
allowed to contain pesticide residue up to 5 percent of the EPA tolerance
established for that produce for that particular pesticide, and still be sold as
organic.
Once we claim Juice Plus+ to be 'organic' we can never go back; so until we can
be confident that we will always have at least 95% of all the ingredients in
Juice Plus+ organic (the USDA's definition), we will not make that claim. One reason is that we are increasingly growing our own produce (eg.
kale) because there is insufficient supply to meet demand. There is simply no
point going through the laborious process to be certified organic when we are
growing kale only for Juice Plus+; and when we know and can guarantee that Juice
Plus+ is 'better than organic'!
Although not all our growers are certified organic, in the words of the
biochemist in charge of Juice Plus+ Quality Assurance "We
go to great lengths to give you a product that is free of pesticides and
herbicides. The quantity of organic produce used to make Juice Plus+ varies from
batch to batch depending upon several factors including availability of
well-ripened organic fruits and vegetables. We buy only from the
well-established suppliers we have known for many years. Additionally, the
finished fruit and vegetable powders are tested for the presence of these
contaminants. You can be assured of a product that is free of pesticides and
herbicides."
Juice Plus+ Orchard and Garden Blend capsules, Juice Plus+ Vineyard Blend capsules and the Juice Plus+ Complete drink mix have earned the product
quality "seal of approval" from NSF
International, the Public Health and Safety Company. NSF is a
not-for-profit organization dedicated to product and ingredient safety. They
provide peace of mind to both consumers and industry through their various
product certification and 'Good Manufacturing Practices' programs.
The NSF seal of approval demonstrates to the public that Juice Plus+ products
meet the highest industry standards; in this
case, that means the very stringent requirements of NSF's dietary supplements
and functional foods certification program. This program independently verifies
that what is on the label is in the bottle, and that the product does not
contain undeclared ingredients or contaminants.
All ingredients use in Juice Plus+ products test "GMO-free".
Finally, since safety is so important, consider this: Wake Forest University (in a study funded by the NHI/NCI)
and MD Anderson in Houston have given Juice Plus+ to head/neck and ovarian
cancer patients (respectively); the ovarian cancer study is now published.
Since toxins are especially dangerous for
anyone with cancer, those research centers would not risk their patients' very lives
during those Juice Plus+ clinical studies, if they had any doubts about safety. They first
satisfied themselves that Juice Plus+ is not only efficacious, but is absolutely
safe. This is true of all the researchers involved in the more than 30 published studies
of Juice Plus+.
We hope this helps you better understand why Juice Plus+ does not claim to be
fully organic, but is - in our opinion - "better than organic.
You can read here
more about the way
Juice Plus+ is made.
Juice Plus+ is second to none in terms of quality, effectiveness and
affordability. It's "the next best thing to fruits and vegetables" only
because it is dehydrated fruits, vegetables, berries and grains; it is not
exactly the same as "the real thing".