Our top runner: The orange!

Nothing is more popular on the breakfast table in Europe than orange-based juices. This makes the orange our most important raw material.

Yes, some of us can still remember a time before bottled orange juice. The first ready-to-drink orange juice was introduced by hohes C in 1958 – and quickly made the orange our most important fruit. We have Ludwig Eckes to thank for coming up with the right idea at just the right time. Having discovered frozen orange juice concentrate in Spain in 1954, he knew he had found the solution for the problem of transporting the vitamin-rich fruit and extending its shelf life. Soon after that he launched the production of orange juice. The European market quickly began to boom, for everyone was eager for a daily dose of vitamins from the bottle during the post-war years. With an ideal combination of top-quality oranges, high vitamin C content and optimal sweet-sour balance, the juice is perfectly in line with consumers’ taste preferences. “The ‘rich in natural vitamin C’ promise has made hohes C the long-standing market leader in Germany and an expert in healthy nutrition – one of the leading global consumer trends today”, as hohes C Senior Brand Manager Stefanie Perschke proudly points out. “We offer a relevant added health benefit along with delicious juices. And orange juice still accounts for the largest share of our product range.”

Oranges are not all alike 

Eckes-Granini uses different types of oranges in order to offer consumers consistent quality the whole year round. Different early- and late-ripening species are processed for our orange juice. The best-known variety is Valencia late. The sophisticated recipe and the ideal blend of concentrates enable us to produce the perfect Eckes-Granini flavour throughout the year.

 

Quality makes the difference

Eckes-Granini buy only fruit that meets our specifications and strict quality standards and is harvested during the respective current season. “We check some of the fruits immediately after they are harvested, the rest upon receipt of delivery”, explains Karl Neuhäuser, who heads the Quality Control Department. “We release them for processing only if the results of all quality tests are fully satisfactory.” These tests include a close look at spoilage indicators as well as pesticide, sugar, acid and vitamin content. They tell us whether the oranges have been harvested at peak ripeness and under acceptable hygiene conditions.

 

Sustainability is important to us

We, as Eckes-Granini Group, we are not only aware of our responsibility to our consumers, but also handle our resources with the greatest possible care. Starting with our most important fruit, the orange, we are pioneering: According to the slogan „smallholders, big opportunities“ we support almost 500 small-scale orange farmers in the application of more sustainable agricultural practices. In addition to this cooperation, we have also taken a significant step towards sustainability in other areas: In Finland, we launched our first juice made from 100 percent sustainably grown oranges – recognizable by the corresponding seal.

 

hohes C 1958: 1958 – hohes C is introduced to the market.
hohes C juice selection: hohes C now offers five varieties of orange juice – so there’s something for everyone!
100 percent sustainable: Our Brazil orange juice in Finland became the first brand to display the sustainability label in January 2020.
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