For decades a glass of orange juice has been part of a typical American breakfast must-have. Children love it, and grown ups seal it as the tasty orange glass full of vitamin C. People have grown so affectionate to their daily glass of orange juice that it has been given the affectionate surname: “OJ”. The famous brand Tropicana has developed a unique expertise in the matter of orange juice production, transforming the orange into a symbol of well-being and a healthy lifestyle. Celebrating 60 years of expertise, the brand has expanded and is known for producing juices with all possible types fruits and combinations. From grapefruit to mango without forgetting smoothies, this American born company is known for marketing an orange juice that is 100% pure with no added water, sugar or chemicals. Part of its strong commitment with the environment comprehends marketing recyclable cartons and an interesting initiative in collaboration with Cool Earth in order to save the rainforests.

On their official website, the company portrays the activity of growing orange trees similar to the one of taking care of wine vineyards where every plant is treated with particular attention and extra care. It seems that the orange trees are planted by hand, as members of the staff carefully pick the seedlings to plan in a particular soil mixture that includes coconuts. When the young plan is ready, it gets moved to the orange grove. According to various production steps described on the website, after being harvested the oranges are pressed within 24 hours in order to guarantee a total freshness.

As part of their commitment towards the environment, the famous brand reminds us that the cartons containers for their juice are recyclable since there are mostly made out of cardboard. In order to keep the juice fresh while preventing leak during the distribution, the cartons are reinforced by a low-density polyethylene, called EVOH that can easily be separated during the recycling process. In addition, according to their website, the cardboards are “cutt-off bits of trees that have been forested for timber and would otherwise go to waste” (Source: http://www.tropicana.co.uk/). Despite rendering a green attitude easy to put into action, the brand realizes that there is still a serious problem when it comes to actually recycling their juice cartons.  On their website, Tropicana explains that “ in the UK, only around 1% of beverage cartons are currently recycled, compared to around 305 in Europe. “ (Source: http://www.tropicana.co.uk/). These deceiving statistics are largely due to the lack of recycling facilities. Consequently, the company collaborates with their carton manufacturers and the Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment UK in order to augment the number of recycling facilities available for consumers.

In addition to this initiative, Tropicana decided to get involved in order to preserve the rainforest in partnership with Cool Earth, a charity that works with local communities to fight against the severe consequences of climate change. Specially marked packages of Tropicana products will have a special code to be entered online at www.tropicanaforest.com and “for each code entered 100 square feet of rainforest will be saved” (Source: http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/13529-Tropicana-Teams-Up-With-Cool-Earth-for-Rescue-The-Rainforest-Campaign). In collaboration with Google Maps, customers that become a part of the initiative can watch the area of rainforest that is being saved thanks to Cool Earth. Its staff is directly involve working hands with the local communities in order to make them understand why it is so important for them to become guardians of this important resource.  Even more, Cool Earth is trying to make the communities the legal custodians of this coveted land. Through the use of satellites the rainforest is monitored in order to be safeguarded and controlled from any illegal intruders.

Rainforest are the home to a vast quantity of animal species and plants that risk to become endangered as the rainforest is rapidly getting butchered. In addition to preserving the equilibrium of these various ecosystems, the rainforest is also a precious source of oxygen for our earth. Tropicana is famous for marketing a fresh and pure orange juice while it also trying to make the world know about its social initiatives. Saving the rainforest is just a small step towards a greater change.