What is HPP?
HPP stands for High Pressure Processing. I have heard other terms thrown around like High Pressure Pasteurization, and High Pressure Pascalization. In reality, Pascalization is the process of HPP, so the term High Pressure Pascalization is a bit redundant. Regardless of the specific words used, HPP is the process of putting tons of pressure on a substance to achieve microbial inactivation or to “alter the food attributes in order to achieve consumer-desired qualities” [Ohio State University].
HPP is done on juice that has already been pressed and bottled in plastic bottles. HPP does not work on glass bottles, because glass cannot withstand the force without breaking.
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Do I need to HPP my juice before I sell it?
Under federal law, if you are going to sell juice wholesale (not direct to consumers), you need to process the juice in a way to meet the 5-log pathogen reduction performance standard. In laymen’s terms, you have to kill a bunch of the living stuff inside. The law does not state that the method used to achieve the 5-log reduction has to be HPP. This can be done with a variety of ways such as heat, UV light, and HPP. Nobody’s into heat anymore, and UV light has some undesirable effects, and doesn’t work well on cloudy juices because the light has trouble penetrating the liquid.
If you are selling only direct to consumers, you do not need to process the juice under federal regulations, but you may have to if your local health department requires it. The easiest way to find out is to simply call your local health department they are usually very helpful in answering questions. Don’t wait until you’re trying to actually open your juice bar to ask; ask now.
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About The Author
Charlie Wettlaufer
President and CMO - Goodnature
Host - Cold Pressed Truth and Goodnature Radio
Creator - JuiceCon
I’ve been around juicing all my life. My Dad built his first hydraulic juice press in 1976 and founded the company Goodnature Products, Inc. I have incredible memories of having “cider parties” when we would invite all the people in our rural neighborhood over to make apple juice. To this day, when I taste apple juice made on a Goodnature press, a rush of nostalgia runs through my body.
I pride myself on guiding our clients into the world of cold-pressed juice and showing them how much fun this industry can be. I love talking business, technology, and marketing. My missions is to carry on my Dad's goal - one day make Goodnature a house-hold name.
Comments
I will add that it's best to HPP them right away to maintain the best taste, color, and shelf life.
Thanks for your answer Robin. Yes I will keep the bottles refrigerated, but for how long can I keep them (refrigerated) before the HPP process? I mean, is it fine if I keep the juice three days (within shelf life) before I bring it to the tolling facility?
That would need to be approved by the co-packer you will be working with. Each place has different requirements.
Hello Charlie. Thanks for your helpful articles. One question for you, how much time after pressing, do I have to bring the juice bottles to the HPP tolling facility? Thanks Again
Hi Juan, The US Food and Drug Administration recommends that perishable foods that are supposed to be refrigerated, like juice, can only be left out at room temperature for two hours before it's considered unsafe to consume. That being said, you will need figure out how long the juice will be sitting unrefrigerated during the process of getting it to the tolling facility and also how the tolling facility handles the juice - is it refrigerated during the process? How about before the process? Hope this helps! 😄
Dear Charlie, Thanks a lot for the valuable information you post on your website. I’m currently starting a baby food business and I’m thinking when buying the HPP machine, does it require staff training? And is the HPP process complicated? Does the produce need to be cold pressed first then the machine is used? Thanks a lot for your help.
HPP is a secondary process after cold-pressing and requires a very large, expensive machine. More than $500,000 US
Hi! I am finding your site to be one of the most informative. I am currently looking to start a cold press direct to consumer business and I have three locations interested, but ultimately will move to wholesale. In speaking with AGS & MARKETS I know I NEED TO DO A HACCP for wholesale, but for direct to customer do you know anyway I could use glass bottles without pasteurization if the HPP is too forceful for glass? Thank you so much.
You are correct, HPP can not be used with glass bottles. You could look into UV light processing, which can achieve the 5 log reduction required, but is more limited on what types of products it works on.
Hi! I was hoping someone would know how much it cost to have your juice go through the HPP process. Let’s say it’s 100lbs of juice.
I believe most HPP facilities charge by the bottle. I've heard $0.20 - $0.40 per bottle.
Dear, I looking for water melon HPP juice import to Viet Nam & Korea. Because It really hard to find one & you are selling the machine so Maybe you know. Can you help to introduce some compynies that supplying this kind of product. Many thanks for your support! Thanks
Amanda, have you tried reaching out to WTRMLN WTR? They would probably be your best bet. I think importing HPP juice to Asia from the states might be hard since the shelf life is usually only 30-60 days, and it takes about 30 days to get a shipment to Asia on a boat.
hi, Your website is very informative. Can we pack HPP processed in tetra pack. And is it possible to increase the shelf life to 6 months. Regards Arvind Khardori
I believe you can HPP tetra pack, yes. I think the max you can get from HPP is about 60 day
Thank you for sharing this! Are there any small scale HPP machines? Or do you know of any ways to extend the shelf life (even by just a few weeks) by a similar process that would not require an entire plant? I would like to get into the wholesale juice business, but it would be impossible to start on such a large scale. Thank you!
David, I recommend reading through my new HPP article: Truth About HPP Juice. This article has a lot more information about HPP, and there are a list of facilities at the bottom of the article that you hire to HPP your juice for you. I believe there are some "lab sized" HPP units used for sale in universities, but I believe the price point on these is still very high and probably impractical for a small juice company.
First of all I want to say thank you for sharing interesting knowledge about juicing. I appreciate that and hopefully my business grows more, that we also can work together soon. do you know, or is there any studies about how the HPP effects the benefits of the juices? does it reduce enzymes, or vitamins? and nowadays we all know that the softeners in plastic bottles ( i know that some are less bad than others) are not what we want to have in our bodies. And Marcus Antebi for example does not use HPP for Juice Press. But i think they use plastic bottles as well. i will ask him privately about that topic. I just want to do as healthy as possible and want to understand the facts behind to deliver a high end product. hope to see you soon. seydi from Berlin, Germany
Seydi, I do not know of any studies on the HPP and the way it affects nutrients and enzymes. I do know that Guelph institute is working on something like this in Canada.
Hi Seydi! I was looking for the exact answer when I found your post. Have you found an answer to how the HPP effects the nutrient benefits?
im from malaysia.. how long the expired date when the cold fresh juice already go to hpp process?? thank
HPP juice usually gets 30-45 day shelf life
Can a bottle of cold pressed juice purchased from a retail grocery store be frozen, thawed, and consumed at a later date? TY
I think from a safety standpoint that is fine, although I'm not 100% sure. Also, I'm not sure what effect it would have on the color and taste.
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