Luckily, even dime-store mandarins always seem to be good. I was disgusted though as I peeled the first fruit of a new box (of the CA "Cutie" brand not Spanish "Clementines"). I removed the peel to find the normally white albedo layer distinctly orange - a supposed sign of artificial dye - though the edible part was sweeter and more tender than most.
I spent a long time on the Internet trying to find out if this was normal coloring for this variety or gross makeup and seemed to settle on three possible conclusions.
- The FDA banned fruit dyes a decade or so ago
- The FDA now requires added coloring to be listed as an ingredient
- Florida and Texas dye their fruit but California fruit change color naturally
I really know nothing about citrus, but it's a pretty fascinating group of fruit - with very different ripening biology than the plants I'm used to. I've read some good books revolving around apples and stone fruits. Anyone know of any good citrus ones?
*as a biased student of California Ag, I blame Florida!
I hate fruit dye. it's really bad on apples here. The green ones are completely covered in a waxy green. It washes off under hot water leaving a very pale green apple with several red portions. Ridiculous. Just leave it alone.
ReplyDeleteOrange dye going through the peel would really bother be. Hopefully it's normal for that variety.
How are numbers 1 and 3 not contradictory?
ReplyDeleteThey are! That was my (attempted) point. I found no authoritative answer to my question, just various websites claiming that one of the three choices was the "correct" one. I'm stumped!
ReplyDeleteMy best guess is that fruit dying remains legal so long as legal dyes are used and recorded on the packaging...
When I was little my dad claimed that they dyed oranges orange, and that their natural color was yellow. I thought he was full of crap....but could it be so, at least for some sadder varieties?
ReplyDeleteCould be!
ReplyDeleteYou might check out
ReplyDeleteCitrus, a history
Pierre Laszlo
I came across this looking for orange (the fruit) dye as well, and maybe I can shed some light. We've been buying a lot of Cuties mandarins in the past few months. Sometimes, especially when they are smaller, they seem completely normal and are really good. But other, larger batches don't taste as good - and they are unnaturally orange inside (the usually white areas). I don't know if they come from different seasons (thus the bigger size), alternate farms who use difference processes, or different states, but one thing is for sure - some of these are getting dyed.
ReplyDeleteI have eaten a lot of small oranges in different countries over the past 6 years (Ukraine - mandarines came from Georgia, and China) and none of them had that orange coloring under the skin. I think it must be dye....I don't like it. I threw mine away and won't buy anymore. :(
ReplyDeleteYeah, I just bought a big bag of Mandarines and was a little freaked out by the normally white pith being a VERY orange color and knew it must be dye. Think it can't really be good for you unless they are using vegetable based dyes.
ReplyDeleteHopefully someone who knows what's going on will stumble across this thread. If there are dyes, the FDA's approved them as "safe," for what it's worth.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't hesitate to buy a brand of greenish oranges if they were reliably good.
I went to the source--Cuties themselves and posed the question. This is their reply:
ReplyDeleteThank you for your inquiry.
Cuties are not dyed. The color you see is a natural occurrence.
We enjoy hearing from our customers. Please continue to visit our web site for new and exciting information and activities. And remember to Root for the Li’l Guy!
Cuties Citrus
www.cutiescitrus.com
good job mike and susie!
ReplyDeletethanks!
"Citrus Red 2" is a dye used to make oranges orange or at least orang er, if thats a word?
ReplyDeleteCitrus Red 2 is banned in most of the world because it is a known carcinogen. However, the FDA allows its use in oranges, justifying the dye never permeates the peel into the orange itself.
Bon Appetite!
I too was disgusted when I bought some cuties and saw orange color under the peel. I'm not really 100% comfortable with cuties own explanation and would rather see some other source documenting this natural occurrence. And as a Floridian, I'm annoyed to hear about Florida dying their oranges too. Does that apply to Oraganics as well?
ReplyDeleteI don't know if there are organic dyes, but I wouldn't be surprised.
ReplyDeleteAt any rate, it's normal for some citrus to be colored under the peel, so I take Cuties Citrus at their word. These things are highly regulated in the US anyway - companies can't just lie about their products.
I have a major problem with this. The dye never permeates the peel.
ReplyDeleteWould about if you use the peel. They should have a big warning label on the oranges to not eat the peel.
I use the zest of oranges in many recipes. Now I know to get organic oranges if I am going to use the zest.
Ran across this post, as I recently bought a box of clementines that have an unusually orange color inside the peel. Wondering if they are dyed. I think they are Chilean clementines, now I plan to go home and look at the box.
ReplyDeleteThe conclusion appears to be that tangerines aren't dyed, but some varieties are orange inside the peel.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in the central valley of CA where navels, valencias, and mandarines/tangerines are grown, packed and shipped. I even worked in the packing facilities and out and the farms for summer work. I can tell you no CA citrus is dyed.
ReplyDeleteI just ate a suspicious grapefruit!
ReplyDeleteWhich is my favorite citrus. It had a sticky label that indicated it was a RUBY and the outer peel was a blush pink, the inside peel was a light pink also. but the center of the fruit was white turning pinkish toward the outer margin. But definitely not a Ruby grapefruit color that I have ever seen.
hmmm,. wondering if it was dyed.
I'm in my mid fifties and I can remember when grapefruit was SO sour consistently that you had to put sugar on it. Now grapefruits are so sweet you can eat them like oranges. Which isn't a bad thing exactly, as I do love grapefruit.
Page oranges are a hybrid of honeybell oranges and clementines. they are almost unnaturally orange on the outside and the pith is orange instead of white.
ReplyDeleteSee this post on Cuties' facebook page:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.facebook.com/Cuties/posts/333644406261
more on it: http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/design/2012/02/designing-the-perfect-fruit/
ReplyDelete