P&G; Will Take ‘Fresh’ Off Label of Orange Juice

Two days after 2,000 cases of its Citrus Hill “Fresh Choice” orange juice were seized by U.S. marshals because of “false and misleading labeling,” Procter & Gamble signed a settlement with the Food and Drug Administration to take the word fresh off of all packaging.

According to the agreement, Procter & Gamble will change the labeling on its cartons of juice by May 22 and will make the same changes on plastic jugs and cans of concentrate by June 5, said Jeffrey Nesbit, spokesman for the FDA.

The FDA’s legal action against the product--the nation’s third-largest-selling orange juice--was taken after the company failed to heed repeated warnings that the use of the term fresh on its juice made from concentrate violated long-standing FDA policy.

Although the seized juice will be donated to a food bank, Citrus Hill Fresh Choice products that were not confiscated in the Wednesday raid will still be sold nationally, said Teri O. Glover, spokeswoman for the Cincinnati-based company.

“It’s important that people understand that the current product will remain available nationally,” Glover said. “The entire dispute is a pure labeling issue. There was never any health or safety issue. There is a lot of consumer confusion.”

P&G; still contends that its labeling is not misleading but agreed to the settlement late Friday to put an end to the controversy over Citrus Hill. In a written release, the company charged the FDA with singling out its product for legal action, when many other processed foods were using the term fresh with impunity.

“There are currently over 500 grocery products using the word fresh on their label,” Glover said in an interview. “We were looking for assurance that this would be enforced on all brands.”

According to Nesbit, that assurance is forthcoming. On Friday, FDA Commissioner David A. Kessler discussed the matter at length with an unnamed senior Procter & Gamble official and assured the company that a level playing field is necessary for all food processors.

“I can’t comment on future actions (by the FDA), but companies that have received warning letters from the FDA should take those letters very seriously,” Nesbit said. “Those include Ragu, Citrus World and some others.”

Ragu Foods Inc., a subsidiary of Unilever, sells a line of Ragu Fresh Italian Brand pasta sauces, and Citrus World sells a juice from concentrate called “Fresh and Natural,” Nesbit said.