Sill, never-ending flavour

Fruit juices are one of the best loved drinks in France. They drink more than a billion litres a year, of all flavours! More orange juice is drunk than any other, representing over half the volume sold.

What are the benefits of fruit juices?

Fruit and vegetables are an essential source of minerals, trace elements, fibre, vitamins and antioxidants. Even if from a nutritional point of view fruit juices are not the same as the fruit themselves, they have a large number of benefits, nonetheless.

• Water: drinking one or two fruit juices a day contributes to hydrating the body.
• Fibre: juices with pulp and mixed fruits provide an important amount of fibre, essential for good digestive regularity.
• Sugar: Fruit juices provide the sugar which provides the body with readily available energy
• Vitamins and trace elements: Most juices contain these in considerable quantities, especially vitamin C A 200ml glass of orange juice provides 60 mg of vitamin C covering for the total Recommended Daily Intake for this vitamin.
• Antioxidants: Fruit contains anti-oxidants, molecules which help one resist the negative action of free radicals involved, notably, in the process of cellular ageing and the apparition of cancers. Fruit juices also provide these anti-oxidants: beta-carotene in carrot juice, lycopene in tomato juice, polyphenols in grape juice, etc.

Is there a difference between nectar, pure fruit juice and those which are made from concentrate?

You will find juices divided into 3 categories: “100% pure juice”, “made from concentrate” and “nectar”. Pure juice comes straight from squeezed fruit. Juice made from concentrate indicates that it has been partially dehydrated for transportation and then reconstituted using the same amount of water. Lastly, nectar is made from juice and puree or fruit pulp to which sugar and water is then added. All of these are available on the refrigerated shelves or at room temperature and have different characteristics.

Source: Union Nationale Interprofessionnelle des Jus de fruits (National Inter-Professional Fruit Juice Union)
*Once open, will only keep for a few days in the fridge.

Which juices have the most calories?

Fruit juices with no added sugar have fairly few calories (50 kcal for 100 ml on average). Be careful, however, since excessive drinking of these could make alter your figure! It is true that we have a tendency to drink without noticing, particularly in summer. With this in mind, a litre of orange juice contains almost 400 kcal!
It is quite possible to take a large glass before meals as a good substitute for an aperitif, or to include it as part of your breakfast or an afternoon snack Nonetheless fruit juices should not be considered as “table drinks”, or only very occasionally.

Is a glass of fruit juice equivalent to a portion of fruit?

One of the principal objectives of the National Plan for Health and Nutrition is to increase the consumption of fruit and vegetables in no matter what form (raw, cooked, pure, prepared, fresh, frozen or preserved) and to achieve an intake of at least 5 fruit and vegetables a day.
Fruit juices contain less fibre and, as a general rule, fewer vitamins than fresh fruit. Nevertheless, the content of a glass of fruit juice can be thought of as one portion, which would need to be supplemented by other forms.

Did you know?

SILL has given particular attention to the reduction of sugar in nectars and to the restoration of vitamins in fruit juices. This restoration consists in adding vitamins in order to reach the content level present in the juice before the heat treatment which preserves them. The treatment carried out and the lengthy storage tend to lower the vitamin content.

"Eat at least 5 fruits and vegetables a day for your health."