The warning

Which route to take

Updated October 2026

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Untreated: fresh and local Treated: longer and wider The capital difference is the obvious one The margin difference runs the other way And the waste profile differs Many producers do both Decide before the brand And decide before the container Test the market before the equipment References

Two businesses, not two versions of one.

Untreated: fresh and local

Short shelf life, refrigerated throughout, sold within days, usually direct or through a small number of nearby outlets. The product tastes like the fruit and the logistics are the hard part.

Treated: longer and wider

A shelf life measured in weeks or months, distribution that can use a warehouse, and a product that survives the journey. The treatment costs money and changes the character.

The capital difference is the obvious one

A pasteuriser or a high-pressure service is a real cost. The less obvious difference is the facility requirement, which can be harder to solve than the equipment.

The margin difference runs the other way

Fresh untreated juice commands a premium and sells in small volumes. Treated juice competes on a shelf against larger producers with better costs.

And the waste profile differs

A three-day shelf life means forecasting demand closely or throwing product away. That is a running cost that does not appear on an equipment quote.

Many producers do both

Fresh for local and direct, treated for anything that has to travel. That is two HACCP positions, two labels and two shelf lives, which is more work than it sounds.

Decide before the brand

Because the brand promise differs. A fresh cold pressed identity does not transfer cleanly to a pasteurised product, and customers notice the change before they are told about it.

And decide before the container

A refrigerated three-day product and a shelf stable three-month product want different bottles, different closures and different barrier properties.

Test the market before the equipment

Selling untreated locally for a season tells you whether there is demand before a pasteuriser is bought. The warning is on the bottle either way, and the answer it gives you is cheap.

References

21 CFR 101.17(g), the warning statement for untreated juice, required verbatim: "WARNING: This product has not been pasteurized and, therefore, may contain harmful bacteria that can cause serious illness in children, the elderly, and persons with weakened immune systems." Exempt where the product achieves the 5-log reduction or meets equivalent HACCP process controls, and for juice sent for further manufacturing at another facility with documentation disclosing the lack of processing. law.cornell.edu

21 CFR 120.24, process controls for juice. A processor must use "control measures that will consistently produce, at a minimum, a 5 log (i.e., 10 5) reduction" in the pertinent microorganism, effective "for a period at least as long as the shelf life of the product when stored under normal and moderate abuse conditions", with the requirements met and "final product packaging within a single production facility operating under current good manufacturing practices". law.cornell.edu

Written from 21 CFR 120.24 and 101.17(g), and from the catalog as it stood on 18 October 2026. Whether a given product is a juice, an acidified food, a dietary supplement or an alcoholic beverage decides which regime applies, and that determination is specific to a formula and a label.