1) What is the significance of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) continuous inspection shield displayed on the Cal-Tex Citrus Juice, LP (Cal-Tex) juice packaging?
The USDA continuous inspection shield means that
the Cal-Tex processing plant is operated under continuous inspection by the
United States Department of Agriculture. Whenever the Cal-Tex plant is in
operation a USDA inspector is present. This service is voluntary, is not mandated
by federal law and exemplifies the extra precautions that Cal-Tex has taken
to insure its customers receive premium quality products. 
2) Why should I be concerned whether or not my juice products are being packed under continuous United States Department of Agriculture inspection?
The United States Department of Agriculture inspectors make in-process checks on the preparation, processing, packaging and warehousing of all products to assure compliance with applicable regulations. The USDA also monitors overall plant sanitation. This continuous inspection service provides added confidence that products are of declared quality, fill level and meet all other label declarations.
3) My juice plant claims they are inspected. What's the big deal about continuous USDA inspection?
All juice plants are periodically inspected by government agencies such as the FDA and local health departments, but months or even years may pass between these inspections. Our continuous inspection process is an ongoing minute-to-minute process.
4) My juice plant claims they have an in-house laboratory to monitor those important things mentioned in question number two. Doesn't this suffice?
Cal-Tex has a fully staffed laboratory headed up by a degreed food technologist in addition to the U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors. The Cal-Tex Quality Assurance Laboratory does monitor those critical issues as well, but the difference is that the USDA inspectors make the final determination as to whether or not products meet the requirements of their grade standards. The USDA inspectors can withhold certification of the quality and condition of the product if it does not meet these high standards. In plants without the continuous presence of the United States Department of Agriculture, plant management, with profit concerns, make the determination as to whether or not the product is shipped.
5) What is the difference between the USDA continuous inspection shield and the USDA grade A shield?
The Grade A shield means that the USDA determined the product meets the US Grade A requirements for juice. There are five single-strength portion juices that must meet United States Standards for US Grade A. They are Orange Juice, Grapefruit Juice, Pineapple Juice, Orange/Grapefruit Juice, and Tomato Juice. The USDA is the only entity that can certify products as Grade A. A Grade A declaration without USDA inspection only means that the product has met company standards for Grade A. Those company standards could be quite different from the United States Standards for Grades.
6) What about those products that don't have Grade A standards?
In a juice plant operated under continuous inspection, the USDA uses the U.S. Standards for Grades for canned juice, industry standards, customer requirements and that company's standards. The USDA continuous inspection shield signifies that the product complies with U.S. Regulations and Standards for Grades.
7) Does Cal-Tex do anything else to insure that I receive juice that has not been adulterated or misbranded?
Cal-Tex utilizes the services of an outside independent laboratory that specializes in the detection of non-declared ingredients in fruit juices. Every month Cal-Tex has samples of incoming concentrates and/or outgoing single-strength juices tested by Krueger Laboratories to insure against adulteration or misbranding. Krueger Laboratories is the leading private laboratory specializing in evaluating the purity and quality of fruit juice products.
8) What does the "Florida Citrus Growers Symbol" on the Cal-Tex Citrus Pride brand product signify?
The Florida Citrus Growers Symbol designates this product as 100% Florida Orange Juice. Products displaying this symbol cannot contain orange juice from anywhere except Florida. The Citrus Pride brand by Cal-Tex is licensed and monitored for compliance and purity by the Florida Department of Citrus in addition to being produced under continuous USDA inspection.
9) What is the new Vita-Most brand juice by Cal-Tex?
Vita-Most is 100% Orange Juice that is fortified
with calcium and displays the USDA continuous inspection shield. It does not
display the US Grade A shield because there are not US Grade A standards for
calcium fortified Orange Juice. We have recently added calcium fortified Apple Juice and Grape Juice to our Vita-Most offerings.
10) Why is Cal-Tex one of the few portion-juice companies that still use "cradle-tray packs" for their cup juices?
We want you to get what you pay for. The cradle-trays protect our quality product from damage while being shipped. Without the cradle-trays the cups often get damaged or leak. The cradle-trays also make the removal from the box and thawing process much easier. Cal-Tex also prints shelf life and code date information on the sides of trays to help rotation. The trays can also be written on to designate the thaw or expiration date.
11) How do I tell if a Cal-Tex product is 100% juice or a juice drink?
All Cal-Tex 100% juices are labeled as 100% above the variety of the juice on the label. All Cal-Tex juice drinks declare the percent of juice on the label and show a sweetener (sugar, fructose, sucrose) as an ingredient.
12) Are all Cal-Tex juice products pasteurized?
Yes, and all labels declare, "pasteurized" on the label surface.
13) Are all Cal-Tex juice products Kosher approved?
All products are certified Kosher except for those containing Grape Juice. Products that are not Kosher are 100% Grape Juice, 100% Fruit Juice Blend and 50% Fruit Punch.
14) How do I get nutritional information about your Cal-Tex juice products?
Go back to our "juices" page and click on the juice and package of your choice to see our nutritional information. If you require more detailed information e-mail us at vicki.white@cal-texjuice.com with your request specifying brand, size, juice, package, and your e-mail address or fax number.
15) Where can I find product suggested bid specifications?
Go to our "Juices" page and click on the brand, size and package of your choice. Then click on the product UPC number for the specific product to reveal the suggested bid specifications.
16) How do I read the code-date on your packaging?
All of our shipping boxes and individual carton juices are imprinted with a Julian date (day of the year) of manufacture. This will be the last numbers printed on the box, after the juice variety, and before the bar code. For Example: August 16, 2006 would appear as 228-06. E-mail, call or write to us to request a Julian code date conversion chart.
17) What is the shelf life of your Cal-Tex juice products?
Most Cal-Tex juice products are shipped frozen. The frozen shelf life is one year. After thawing the shelf life is fourteen days if kept refrigerated and thawed properly. For best flavor, thaw and keep refrigerated under 38°F.
18) Where can I find product weights, cubes, and pallet configuration?
Go back to our juices page and click on the specific size and package for your required information. All this information will be readily displayed.
19) Can I buy Cal-Tex products at the grocery store?
Cal-Tex products are usually not available at the grocery store. Our products are distributed by Foodservice distributors to outlets such as hospitals, schools and quick-service restaurants. Some food-service distributors do have cash and carry operations or offer customer will-calls. Please contact your local food-service distributor and ask for the customer-service department. Request frozen portion-juices packaged by Cal-Tex and produced under continuous USDA inspection.
20) How do I contact Cal-Tex with additional questions, comments, compliments, or complaints?
Write to us at: Cal-Tex Citrus Juice, LP
P.O. Box 7600
Houston, TX 77270
Attn: Sales & Marketing
Call us at: 1-800-231-0133
Or E-mail us at: vicki.white@cal-texjuice.com
