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All of your innocent questions answered in a polite and orderly fashion Click here to read a glossary of the juice world's confusing jargon, or read on for info about the rest of the family...
Where are your drinks made?
Our juices are made out in the country. The fruit gets squeezed and bottled overnight and arrives in your town early in the morning. We then check the juices and send them out in our little chiller vans around town, getting them to you as fast as our little wheels will carry us.
Where do you get your fruit?
In all honesty, it's quicker to tell you where we don't get our fruit from. We don't get any fruit from Finland, Libya or Hong Kong. We do follow the sun around the world — in spring our oranges come from countries such as Jamaica, Egypt and Morocco, whereas in summer they are sourced from countries like Brazil, South Africa and Argentina. Our blueberries are from Canada, our mangoes are from India and our strawberries are from Poland. We don't see any particular reason why we shouldn't use the best possible fruit in all of our drinks — if you can think of one, please let us know.
What about fuel miles?
We are trying to make our company a sustainable one, in the true sense of the word, and procuring locally wherever possible is a significant element of that. Currently, most of our fruit is sourced from Europe. But the reality of the way Mother Nature works is that fruits such as bananas and mangoes don't grow round these parts for love nor money and have to be sourced from further afield. Our fruit always travels by boat or rail, so none of it is being air freighted, which is where the fuel miles get crazy. And as well as aiming to be the toughest enforcer of environmental and social standards where our fruit is grown, we donate 10% of our profits to support NGOs in the countries where our fruit is grown, to help people who need it most. We know that this has nothing to do with fuel miles but it's all part of our aim to try and leave things a tiny bit better than we find them. You can find out more about the innocent foundation (our very own registered charity) and the NGOs that we support by clicking here.
How are babies made?
When Mummy and Daddy have special hugs, Mummy sometimes whispers a magic word to Daddy. When Daddy hears the magic word, he feels very happy and in a few seconds they will have ordered a baby, a bit like shopping on the internet.
How do you make your smoothies?
Because innocent smoothies contain nothing but fruit, making them is a relatively simple process. However, this doesn't necessarily mean it's easy. The two most important considerations are to ensure that only the best fruit is used and that both the fruit and everything it touches are spotlessly clean. We are very particular about the fruit we use. Not only do we insist on specific varieties (senga sengana strawberries, Maui Gold pineapples and alphonso mangoes, for example) but we try to deal direct with the plantations to allow us to choose the best crops and to get fruit that is harvested at the optimum stage in its life. Obviously, the fresh fruit that comes to us has to be kept spotlessly clean and in tip-top condition. The oranges that come in for squeezing, for example, are inspected, washed and then inspected again before they are squeezed. This freshly squeezed juice is then added to the fruit that is crushed whole, be it our mashed bananas, crushed cranberries or pulped mangoes, to turn the juice into a smoothie. We then gently pasteurise the smoothie, using the same process that farmers use on their fresh milk. This ensures that there are no bugs in the juice. Because of the high pulp content of our juices it is best to take this precaution. In the US, if you don't pasteurise your juice, you have to put a health warning on the front. This hasn't been introduced in the UK yet, but we're not going to take any risks. Then, once all the blending of the fruit has been completed we simply put it straight into the bottles and get it down to Fruit Towers.
And your thickies?
Our thickies are made in virtually the same way, but with nice fresh bio yoghurt that gets delivered to us from the dairy up the road. We mix it with the same fruits we use for our smoothies, and also blend in honey, fresh from the world's finest flowers. Once made, the thickies get bottled straightaway and will be in the shops by the very next morning.
Why should I buy your smoothies instead of another brand?
Because they are made from 100% pure fruit and fresh juices. Other smoothies use concentrates, colourings, preservatives, water and sugar - we keep ours 100% natural.
Why are concentrates so rubbish?
We believe that food companies should do everything they can to get food to people in its natural state. A concentrated orange juice is OJ that has been boiled, then evaporated in a vacuum and then homogenised, resulting in a thick tar. This is then frozen and shipped to countries where it is defrosted, reconstituted with water and has 'add backs' added (to enhance flavour and aroma). The concentration process significantly affects the nutrition and taste profile of the juice and that's why we won't ever use concentrates. It has to be pure fruit for us.
How many portions of fruit does an innocent smoothie count for if I am trying to get my five portions of fruit and veg a day?
Each smoothie contains ¾lb of fruit. Each recipe's label tells you how many bits of each fruit that recipe contains, but in all of our smoothies all of this fruit will add up to at least two portions of fruit. We work with Professor Joe Millward, one of the country's top nutritionists and Director of the Centre for Nutrition and Food Safety, who says: "Each innocent smoothie supplies the daily fruit requirement, which when taken with at least two and a half portions of veg would meet the guidelines of 5 portions per day." The fact that we use fresh juices and whole crushed fruit rather than concentrated juices means that smoothies really don't get much healthier than ours.
How much fibre is there in your drinks?
Fruit juices don't contain any significant amounts of fibre. But our smoothies are different - they contain whole crushed fruit and can add highly meaningful amounts of fibre to your daily intake. Our highest fibre smoothie is mangoes and passion fruits, which contains 6.5g of fibre per 250ml smoothie*. The British Nutrition Foundation recommends that adults should consume at least 18g of fibre each day. As a comparison, a bowl of bran flakes contain 4.5g of fibre. * obtained by analysis (AOAC method) at an independent third party accredited laboratory.
Why do we need fibre?
Eating plenty of fibre helps to lower blood cholesterol and keep the gut healthy. For further information on fibre check out the British Nutrition Foundation's website.
Will smoothies make me fat?
Every nutritionist in the land advocates eating as much fruit and veg as possible. As foods, fruit and veg definitely contain calories, but every single calorie delivers you positive lovely nutrients and vitamins. It's all about having a good, balanced and varied diet.
What's all this about GI diets then?
GI stands for Glycaemic Index. The GI value of a food indicates the amount it increases blood sugar levels when eaten. If you are on the GI diet you should eat a diet that is rich in low GI foods. All of our pure fruit smoothies have a low GI value. Click here for more information.
How should I look after and store your drinks?
Please please please keep our drinks cold. We can't stress that enough. Because we don't use any preservatives or other artificial stuff that might make them last a bit longer, they need to be well cared for. They should be stored between 0-5° C, which, luckily enough, is the temperature of your average fridge. So stick them in the chiller as soon as you get home from the shops, or if you're saving a bit for later, don't leave it on your desk - pop it back in the fridge for a while. Once opened, we reckon our drinks are best drunk on the same day, although as previously mentioned you should refrigerate them between sips. If you leave them out of the fridge, they will eventually start to ferment. This is a completely safe, natural process but it means the smoothie goes fizzy. It normally causes tiny bubbles in the drink. Click here to find out more about fermentation. If you suspect a drink to be fermented, please dispose of the contents of the bottle and contact us at hello@innocentdrinks.co.uk or call the banana phone with details about the bottle and its enjoy by date. So, please do keep our little drinks nice and cold.
How long do they last?
Our drinks are completely fresh so they generally last as long as a pint of milk. innocent drinks should always be kept chilled and drunk on the same day they are opened. Always check the 'enjoy by' date on top of the cap to make sure it's still nice 'n' fresh.
Can I freeze your smoothies?
Our smoothies are made of nothing but whole crushed fruit and pure and fresh juices, so it's completely safe to freeze them. However, we don't really recommend it because they taste much better fresh. To be more specific, bananas don't freeze well; when they defrost they go brown and a bit slimy. Check out this picture of a fresh banana and one that's defrosted. We know which we would rather drink. 
If you do decide to freeze one of our smoothies, please make sure you defrost it in the fridge so it stays chilled at all times and note that this might take as long as 3 days. You should also drink it on the day of defrosting.
Do you have any drinks that don't contain banana?
Our freshly squeezed orange juice and thickies are completely banana free.
Are your products organic?
No. Our drinks are completely natural and taste good and do you good; a claim that we can substantiate until the cows come home. But they aren't organic. Ultimately, our first loyalty is to the best tasting produce. If an ingredient tastes better, we will use it. So when we are sourcing ingredients we do not differentiate between those that are badged organic and those that are not. We choose the ones that taste the best. So far we have not found any organic fruit that tastes better than the fruit we use. This is due, at least in part, to the fact that we are very precise in the types of fruit we use (for example, senga sengana strawberries for our smoothies). And organic simply doesn't provide as many options, so you can't necessarily get the optimum variety of crop organically. Suffice to say, if we try an organic ingredient that tastes better than our existing ones, we'll endeavour to use it. More specifically, it's extremely difficult to source the right kind of organic exotic fruits, such as mangoes and passion fruits, year-round, which we need to do to ensure consistent high standards. Organic fruit is also extremely expensive, which would make the drink very expensive. We are definitely committed to making safe drinks that are free from harmful levels of pesticides and other chemical contaminants. We only ever use fruit which has been certified clean in terms of pesticides, and furthermore, we spot-check the ingredients again ourselves, something which we're not aware any other smoothie brand does. (Most people take the view that if they have the certificate then that is good enough. We believe we should perform our own tests as well.) In 2004, our independent testing on ingredients at an accredited laboratory showed that only 0.15% of tests resulted in anything being detected at all, and these detections were less than 2% of the Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) that you are allowed. Each year our policy will be reviewed and testing procedures will be updated. Furthermore in 2005 our drinks were tested by the Pesticide Residue Committee (set up by the government to monitor pesticide levels in foods we eat) and no residues at all were detected in any of our drinks.
And what about all of those plastic bottles?
We use a plastic called PET to make our bottles, and we've been working for ages, in conjunction with the bottle makers, to start using bottles that have less impact on the environment. In 2002 we reduced the amount of plastic we use in our bottles by 10%, which was a significant reduction in the amount of plastic we use. Today, we've made even greater strides. In February 2006 we launched a new bottle made from 50% recycled plastic. At the moment, 50% is the maximum the technology will allow, and as far as we know we are the first drinks manufacturers to make a 50% recycled plastic bottle, but that doesn't mean that we are lighting cigars and slapping ourselves on the back. We continue to work towards our ultimate goal - a 100% recycled bottle. Running a sustainable business is fundamental to everything we do at innocent. So we made the decision to take the hit on the extra cost for the recycled plastic. We are not passing the cost on to you because we didn't think it would be fair.
So can I recycle your plastic bottles and tetra pak cartons?
We've got a whole section on our website dedicated to this. You can check it out here.
Are your products suitable for vegans?
Smoothies — We're afraid as we can't guarantee that our drinks are shellac free, due to the small chance that tiny amounts of shellac do make it into our drinks, we can't class our drinks as being suitable for vegans. . Thickies — no (they contain dairy produce and honey).
Are your products suitable for pregnant women?
Yes. Although we've heard that some of them prefer coal.
Can infants and children drink your products?
Infants under 12 months shouldn't drink our vanilla and honey bean thickies, or our natural detox smoothies as they contain honey. The Food Standards Agency says that honey should not be given to infants under 12 months old because of the small risk of botulism. Infantile botulism occurs when honey contains Clostridium Botulinum spores, which infect the infant gut that then produces the toxin. This is not a problem for anyone aged more than 12 months. Regarding children in general, our smoothies, thickies and juices are OK - they contain nothing but crushed and juiced fruit (and bio yoghurt in the thickies), so the health properties should be welcome for kids who quite like sweets and crisps too. But it should be noted that our smoothies and juices contain a large amount of naturally occurring fruit sugars. For this reason you can add water to dilute them if you like. The FSA also recommends that for children, you should try to keep fruit juice to mealtimes. In general, look on the ingredients panel and check the amount of fruit in each bottle. If it seems like a reasonable amount of fruit, then it will be OK. If you don't usually give your child this much fruit, then adjust the amount accordingly. We make a range of drinks specifically for children which you can find out about here. They've got less bits in them, as children seem to prefer their smoothies that way.
Where can I buy your smoothies for kids?
They're in a few places:
Why do you always use apples, oranges and bananas in your smoothies?
These three fruits are a bit like the salt and pepper of the fruit world, except there are three of them. We use them for natural sweetness (apples), natural sharpness (oranges) and natural thickness (bananas). It beats using artificial stuff.
So why don't you call your mangoes and passion fruits smoothie "apples, mangoes and passion fruits"?
We name our smoothies according to whichever flavours you can taste the most. So we feel if we were to start calling the smoothies "apples, mangoes and passion fruits," it would be a bit misleading, as what you really taste when you take a mouthful are the mangoes and passion fruits. All of the ingredients are printed in full on the label, so it's not like we're trying to be sneaky or anything.
How do you make sure your fruit is from ethical sources?
Each and every one of our fruit suppliers has signed up to the International Labour Organisation standards. We see this as a minimum requirement and it covers the basic workers' rights issues e.g. no child labour, no bonded labour etc (see www.ilo.org for more details). We are meeting with more and more of our growers, making sure that every piece of fruit comes from a source that befits a company called innocent. As our fruit comes from all over the world this is a huge task, but one which we are passionately committed to. Recently we met with the Rainforest Alliance (www.rainforest-alliance.org) to see the work they have done at a banana plantation in Costa Rica. We were so impressed that we now only buy bananas from Rainforest Alliance approved plantations. The Rainforest Alliance not only looks at farm workers' rights and wellbeing, but also protects ecosystems on the farms, which encourages biodiversity. We believe this sustainable approach is the best one. A well-run farm with motivated workers means better quality fruit and better productivity, which means we get nicer fruit and the farms are more profitable.
Are you going to move all your fruit to Rainforest Alliance approved sources?
So far, the Rainforest Alliance only certify bananas, a tiny amount of the world's passion fruit (some of which we buy) and a tiny amount of the world's citrus (again, we buy some of this). As they develop new standards for new fruits, we will assess their suitability for our growers' countries of origin. Outside of the world of fruit they certify coffee, cocoa and forestry. Find out more here: www.rainforest-alliance.org
Why don't you buy fairtrade fruit?
It's a bit complicated, but in essence, we didn't feel that fairtrade was the right system for us. The main reason is because not all of our fruit comes from family run small holdings, therefore Fairtrade isn't always applicable and in addition isn't always available. We also felt that focusing on money isn't always the right thing to do. That's why we have started working with the Rainforest Alliance on bananas. We like the way they approach sustainability from an environmental perspective in combination with workers' rights. Articles like this one from The Observer Food Monthly debate the key differences between Rainforest Alliance and Fairtrade (this one's about coffee).
What is the innocent foundation?
The innocent foundation is a grant giving charity that was set up in July 2004 with the idea of bringing nature and communities closer together for mutual benefit. innocent donate 10% of our profits each year to charity, primarily to the innocent foundation, which funds rural development projects in the countries where our fruit comes from. Find out more here. |
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