The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a proposed rule to amend an over 60-year-old Standard of Identity (SOI) for pasteurized orange juice to promote honesty and fair dealing for consumers. The proposed rule will also provide flexibility to the food industry. This rule furthers the agency’s ongoing actions to review its portfolio of over 250 SOI to make sure they are useful, relevant and serve consumers in the best possible way.
The proposed rule would reduce the minimum Brix requirement (a measurement that indicates the sugar content of a liquid), from 10.5 percent to 10 percent. The FDA is taking this action in response to a citizen petition submitted by the Florida Citrus Processors Association and Florida Citrus Mutual in 2022.
