A Simple Guide To What Does From Concentrate Mean For Juices And Drinks

You want to buy a trendy drink from the market. So you search for fresh drinks and land upon “Fresh Orange Juice” with a byline of “concentrate”.

Looking at that, you start to question, “What does from concentrate mean” on that bottle? The question seems simple, but very few people stop and think about what it actually means.

The more we understand the ingredients in our everyday products, the better decisions we can make as consumers. 

“From concentrate” means a product is made by adding water back to a concentrated version of the original juice.

So rather than fresh juice, it is more like a stored pulp which is added to the water with other extras. While both are from nature, one is still fresher and more original than the other. 

To get through the meaning of “what does from concentrate mean” you first need to understand the process of it. After that, we will get into the NFC vs FC, its uses and the possible things you need to consider. So let’s dive into the chapter of “ from concentrate ” meaning. 

What Does From Concentrate Mean?

To explain it simply, “ from concentrate ” is the concentrated version of the fruit juice in the form of pulp.

The juice begins as a fresh fruit juice but producers remove most of its water to create a thick and easy-to-use liquid. 

Later, at different locations, the manufacturers reconstitute the concentrate by adding water back to it.

The water is added to approximate the original juice before pasteurizing and packaging it for the final sale.

It is really different from “not from concentrate,” as in that process the product’s originality is intact until sale. 

The reason why they concentrate the juices purely lies in the ease of transportation, the reduction in cost, easy handling and consistent taste.

However, during concentration, some volatile flavor compounds and nutrients can be lost.

Manufacturers may add back natural or artificial flavors, vitamin C, or other ingredients to restore taste and nutrition. 

What does From Concentrate mean in Juice? 

The process of making the concentrate is really simple and doesn’t need anything extra. A simple fruit and a juicer are all you need to concentrate.

So let’s understand the process and the meaning behind “What does from concentrate mean on a juice bottle” 

Step 1:  Fresh fruit is squeezed; oranges, apples, or whatever fruit is used to juice after harvesting them. It is done near the growing region to make the process fast and effective. 

Step 2: You need to remove the water content from the fresh juice.The easiest way to do so is to heat the juice so that the water evaporates.

This can shrink the juice down to a fraction of its original volume. In the end, you will get a ⅕ or ⅙ of the original juice in the form of pulp. 

Step 3: The concentrated pulp is smaller in volume and can be properly frozen to make it far cheaper and easier to store than fresh ones. In my opinion, this is the best part about concentration.

It lets juice companies source fruit from wherever it’s cheapest or in season, then reconstitute it near where it’ll be sold. 

Step 4: After evaporation and concentration, most of the nutrition got lost in the process. To get them back, most manufacturers add water and other nutrients back to it, such as vitamins, aroma and other flavors. 

You can see this process happening in various products in the market, such as orange juice, coconut water, lemon juice, apple juice or various other drinks.

The term “from concentrate” is also used in ketchup or other fruit pulps available in the market. 

What does From Concentrate mean Versus Not From Concentrate?

We understood what “from concentrate” means, but there is this term “ NFC” Not from concentrate.

This is basically the opposite of concentrate: a fruit juice that hasn’t been touched or concentrated in any way.

In this section, we will focus on the difference between concentrate and not from concentrate and how they affect the buying decision of the consumer. 

What’s the difference 

The key difference lies in the process, not in the ingredients. Not from concentrate (NFC) means the juice is extracted from fresh fruit and packaged directly without removing and later adding back water.

You will not find any process of removing or evaporating the water from the juice. Meanwhile, in the “from concentrate” process, the aim is to make the juice suitable for transport and minimise the overall cost.

Though the process doesn’t have that much of a difference, the loss of nutrition and original taste in the “From concentrate” process is visible.

The extra processing step in concentrate juice tends to show up in subtle taste differences. 

Taste and Texture

The NFC juice generally tastes closer to the original one and feels like biting into the fresh fruit. It still has all the originality and can be beneficial in many ways.

But a from-concentrate juice goes through heat and evaporation, which strips out many of its flavours and taste. The addition of extras at the end makes the product more processed. 

Texture-wise, NFC often feels more pulpy and smoother due to the retention of original juice.

That said, the quality varies a lot by brand because some concentrate juices are processed carefully enough that the difference is barely noticeable to most people. 

Nutritional Value 

On comparing the nutritional value of both the products, they are similar. Vitamin C, sugars and other nutrients survive the concentration process well.

Only some of the vitamins that are heat-sensitive and antioxidants may possess some part of them during the processing. 

The fact of missing some nutrients from concentrate is not wrong but the difference is usually minor rather than dramatic.

Both contain similar amounts of calories and sugar in most of the cases. So, the question, “Is concentrated juice bad for you?” cannot be answered with a simple yes or no.

However, you should always check the label. As in many cases, during the process of reconstitution, the pulp concentration is lower compared to the other added things.

Price Difference

Concentrated juice or products are almost always cheaper compared to the original one.

The reason is simple: the freshness of the original juice and product is still considered better than the stored ones. Removing the water from the juice can take away a lot of things from it than water. 

NFC juices are closer to the original juice than from concentrate, which makes them more expensive.

It has to be shipped and stored at full volume, often refrigerated, which adds cost to the final product. That’s why NFC juice usually carries a noticeably higher price tag on store shelves.  

From Concentrate: Where Else Can It Be Used?

When we think of ‘from concentrate’, we automatically (and mostly) think about drinks like orange juice, lemon juice etc. But ‘concentrate’ is not limited to just drinks.

Now that we have a base idea of what does from concentrate mean, let us see where else this can be applied. 

Ready to make juices: The answer of what does concentrate mean in juice bottles points towards the use of that particular fruit concentration.

This makes the whole process of taking juice out and filling the bottle just to get a few days of shelf life unreasonable. By concentration, you can store, transport and use the juice even after months of taking it out. 

Frozen juice concentrate: People concentrate and freeze the juice to use it wherever they need. In this way, you don’t have to make an effort every time to make a juice from the start. It is convenient, takes up less storage space, and has a longer shelf life. 

Jams, jellies and spreads: the process of making jams, jellies, ketchups and spread always has a process of concentration involved. They just add a particular fruit concentration to the product with other things. 

Baking Goods: Some food manufacturers use fruit juice concentrate instead of refined sugar in products such as cereals, snack bars, sauces, and baby foods to provide natural sweetness.

Things To Consider Before Buying The Concentrated Products 

Knowing what does from concentrate mean only becomes helpful when you really put them to use in real life. Along with these terms, always look for the things that can influence your diet and can affect body health.

So, the following are the things you should consider before buying any concentrate-labeled product. 

Check the Label 

I always start by reading the label closely because it basically tells you what you want to know. And I would also advise everyone to read the label whenever they buy something.

Just look for words such as added sugars, the percentage of concentrated fruit, and artificial flavours.

If the label lists only juice and common stability preservatives or vitamins, I feel more confident in buying that. 

Other than this, you should also read the serving size and the calories of the products to compare with the other brands.

Occasionally labels can be vague, so skipping the products that aren’t clear enough is better than consuming something risky.

Look for 100% Juice 

Always look for real fruit juice with minimal preservatives and chemicals. Just having “from concentrate” doesn’t mean it’s watered down in nutrients and provides you the same amount of benefits as the original one.

From concentrate is a nice option but it cannot replace real fruit juice. So it is always advised to go for the original ones.

If a product isn’t 100% juice, it often contains added sugar or other fillers, which should be avoided to live a healthy lifestyle. 

Review the Ingredients

You should always read the ingredients list from top to bottom before buying anything. Scan for sugars listed under different names, like added sugar or concentrated sugar.

If your ingredients are short and have names like Vitamin C, then going with it is a good decision. But your product contains a never-ending list of ingredients with all the names that sound chemical to you.

Then avoiding that product is better than consuming it. When in doubt, I pick the product with the fewest ingredients. 

Check the Fruit Percentage

You should always check how much actual fruit is in a juice before buying it. Brands love putting a big picture of an orange or mango on the bottle even when the actual juice content is minimal. 

So flip it over, check the concentration of the fruit pulp and if the percentage is lower, stop right there.

At this point, after buying all you will get is the water, added sugar and the artificial coloring in your product. From-concentrate juice is good if the concentration of the fruit is right and accessible. 

Consider Your Dietary Needs 

If you’re someone who is cutting sugar and has a goal of only consuming natural things. Then you can absolutely ignore the from-concentrate and can go with the NFC products.

The main reason is that water is added back during processing, and some products may also contain added sugars or preservatives.

Many people can find this questionable and influence their choice while purchasing these drinks.

Whereas 100% juices without any mixer of extras cannot go wrong in your dietary goals and help you stay hydrated and nourished during dieting. 

Conclusion 

Now that we have gone through the term “what does from concentrate mean“, you can better understand what sets it apart from fresh juice.

Along with this, the not from concentrate term and its comparison with from-concentrate also solved the confusion between them.

From concentrate is just a simple term where the juice is concentrated into a thick pulp and then being used to make the final product.

The process is simple to understand and easy to apply. From the differences to its best uses, we went through just everything related to from concentrate. 

At the end, the “what does from concentrate mean” blog concluded by providing us with the right information and the things we should look out for before buying.

All we need to do is flip the product, search through its ingredients and buy accordingly. 

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