Here at The Pittsburgh Juice Company we are passionate about making healthy living tasty and fun. Since we started in 2013 with a seven-item menu, we have expanded our offerings to over thirty different beverages and a variety of food items. Despite our growth, we are committed to maintaining the utmost artisanal quality. Everything at The Pittsburgh Juice Company is made with whole, organic, raw, and vegan ingredients, ensuring that each item is both flavorful, nutritious and consistent in flavor.
In this blog post, we'll get right into it: What is cold-pressed juice and how does it compare to other juices?
In general, there are two ways to go about fresh juicing: cold-pressed or centrifugal. Cold-press juicing requires either a masticating or hydraulic juicer. At home juicing is usually done with a traditional centrifugal juice extractor. Heat (through friction from fast moving parts) generated by centrifugal juice extractors has been shown to denature enzymes and quickly diminish nutrients. However, if you are juicing at home and drinking the juice immediately out of the juicer, it is still highly nutritious.
Juicologist Leonardo, using a hydraulic cold-press at The Pittsburgh Juice Company's production facility
Cold-press juicing is the process of applying a slow pressing action directly to the fruits and vegetables. A filter holds back the fibrous pulp, allowing juice to be extracted. This process preserves vitamins, enzymes, minerals, and overall nutrients due to minimal oxidation and elimination of heat (through lack of friction) from the juicing process. This method maintains the nutritional integrity of the fruits and vegetables. The high nutrient content means there are beneficial living enzymes still in the juice even after being cold-pressed.
You may have also heard of High Pressure Processing (HPP), which is the process of extending the shelf life of juices through placing prepackaged juices in high isometric pressure. This high pressure results in the inactivation of microbial enzymes, while keeping most nutrients intact, unlike other forms of pasteurization. HPP does have its advantages in that it extends shelf life, making wholesale possible. At The Pittsburgh Juice Company we choose to offer both fresh and HPP juices so you can choose what is best for you.
While each of these methods can have their benefits, at The Pittsburgh Juice Company we pride ourselves in being raw, organic, and cold-pressed daily, in order to provide you with the best product possible. Our artisanal cold-press method allows for the most nutritious and fresh flavor of juice!
"Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food." - Hippocrates