Author Topic: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.  (Read 5536 times)

nullzero

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Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« on: June 26, 2012, 01:03:41 PM »
Just bought 8 excellent looking medium large "Purity" brand organic mangoes from Trader Joes. Price was .99 each which was great, its probably a limited shipment because it just came in today and was placed near the front (a price sign was not placed out even yet).
« Last Edit: June 26, 2012, 01:07:39 PM by nullzero »
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FlyingFoxFruits

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #1 on: June 26, 2012, 01:51:25 PM »
they grown in CA or out of USA?

I find that local, not organic, is the only way to really get the best mangoes
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Tim

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #2 on: June 26, 2012, 02:46:34 PM »
From what I can remember, they're CA grown mangoes.

Null - I'm gonna send you a gas bill if I come back from lunch empty handed  ;D ;D ;D
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nullzero

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #3 on: June 26, 2012, 03:01:58 PM »
they grown in CA or out of USA?

I find that local, not organic, is the only way to really get the best mangoes

Unfortunately these are Mexican organic mangoes. Purity brand is usually have great consistence with taste. The CA grown Purity Keitt mangoes don't come in until later in the season. The CA grown organic Keitt were excellent.
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murahilin

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #4 on: June 26, 2012, 03:22:01 PM »
I wonder if the mangos labeled as organic from Mexico really are organic...

puglvr1

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #5 on: June 26, 2012, 03:31:01 PM »
I wonder if the mangos labeled as organic from Mexico really are organic...

Excellent question? Unfortunately, there's probably NO way to be sure?

bsbullie

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #6 on: June 26, 2012, 03:36:31 PM »
I wonder if the mangos labeled as organic from Mexico really are organic...
Amazing whatthat little sticker will do...was the farmhands pee organic ?   ;D
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nullzero

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #7 on: June 26, 2012, 04:08:31 PM »
Well its Purity Organic's name on the line if its not true. With mangoes having non organic is not as big as a deal for me. The fruit and vegetables I eat the skins of I have an issue with being non organic.

Reason I listed this, is Purity brand mangoes consistently have good taste and texture. The produce selection is excellent.
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Tropicdude

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #8 on: June 26, 2012, 04:23:43 PM »
I wonder if the mangos labeled as organic from Mexico really are organic...

International farmers do require certification to declare themselves "Organic"

Mangoes are tested heavily for residual chemicals anyway,  they are so strict that even non organic mangoes could be considered organic.  importing into the US is one of the toughest markets, and because of the hot water dip requirements it makes it even harder,  if you pick the mangoes too soon, they do not ripen right, too late and they get damaged in post harvest or are not accepted.
Mangoes are hot dipped according to size, if they are not "cooked enough" they are rejected, too much and they taste like crap.

Mexicans take their mango cultivation seriously, its a big business and they do try to grow a good product.  they have a big advantage over other exporters like the DR. and that is they can just truck in their crops.

 
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Tim

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #9 on: June 26, 2012, 04:42:02 PM »
Oh right... Hooray for "organic Tommy Atkins"
Tim

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #10 on: June 26, 2012, 06:05:55 PM »
I wonder if the mangos labeled as organic from Mexico really are organic...

International farmers do require certification to declare themselves "Organic"

Mangoes are tested heavily for residual chemicals anyway,  they are so strict that even non organic mangoes could be considered organic.  importing into the US is one of the toughest markets, and because of the hot water dip requirements it makes it even harder,  if you pick the mangoes too soon, they do not ripen right, too late and they get damaged in post harvest or are not accepted.
Mangoes are hot dipped according to size, if they are not "cooked enough" they are rejected, too much and they taste like crap.

Mexicans take their mango cultivation seriously, its a big business and they do try to grow a good product.  they have a big advantage over other exporters like the DR. and that is they can just truck in their crops.

Yes, international farmers require certification to call their products organic but the certifying agencies in other countries are not always the best or most reliable. I don't know what agency was used by Purity in Mexico. I do know that certifying agencies in China have routinely falsefied documents to make their products appear organic. There is also a huge problem with Whole Foods claiming some of the products they bring in from China as being organic.
Also the fact that there are no trace chemicals in those mangos beyond guidelines considered safe doesn't make a product organic. For example, any product grown with chemical fertilizers is not organic, but may not have any trace chemicals in the product.
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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #11 on: June 28, 2012, 02:25:22 AM »
I wonder if the mangos labeled as organic from Mexico really are organic...

International farmers do require certification to declare themselves "Organic"

Mangoes are tested heavily for residual chemicals anyway,  they are so strict that even non organic mangoes could be considered organic.  importing into the US is one of the toughest markets, and because of the hot water dip requirements it makes it even harder,  if you pick the mangoes too soon, they do not ripen right, too late and they get damaged in post harvest or are not accepted.
Mangoes are hot dipped according to size, if they are not "cooked enough" they are rejected, too much and they taste like crap.

Mexicans take their mango cultivation seriously, its a big business and they do try to grow a good product.  they have a big advantage over other exporters like the DR. and that is they can just truck in their crops.

Yes, international farmers require certification to call their products organic but the certifying agencies in other countries are not always the best or most reliable. I don't know what agency was used by Purity in Mexico. I do know that certifying agencies in China have routinely falsefied documents to make their products appear organic. There is also a huge problem with Whole Foods claiming some of the products they bring in from China as being organic.
Also the fact that there are no trace chemicals in those mangos beyond guidelines considered safe doesn't make a product organic. For example, any product grown with chemical fertilizers is not organic, but may not have any trace chemicals in the product.

I totally agree with you, if they used chemical fertilizers its should not be labeled Organic,  what I meant by "considered as organic" was from the viewpoint of health concerns.  things like herbicides, and insecticides are rarely used in Mango plantations here in the Dominican Republic, and from the many Mexican agri papers I go through it really doesn't seem they use it much if any. fruit fly is the main concern, and traps are the most effective control.

Also one must consider that even if a farmer is not certified organic, he may be completely organic by default, simply because all they use is manure, and don't spray anything , in places like Sinaloa its pretty dry, here in the DR in our SW area, humidity is low and they get very little rain, they have no problem with fungus there and do not spray,  using chemicals is just an added cost, and in the third world, organic fertilizer is actually cheaper in most cases.

Again I agree, if its labeled Organic, it should be 100% with no exceptions, no GMOs .   I would have hard time believing anything imported is organic, given that the hot water dip and hydrocooling water usually has chlorine in it to prevent fungal growth on the fruit.  But out of all the Imported fruits, I believe Mangoes are probably the least likely to have problems, compared to say,  Papaya or Peaches from S. America etc.
William
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fruitlovers

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #12 on: June 28, 2012, 02:36:26 AM »


I totally agree with you, if they used chemical fertilizers its should not be labeled Organic,  what I meant by "considered as organic" was from the viewpoint of health concerns.  things like herbicides, and insecticides are rarely used in Mango plantations here in the Dominican Republic, and from the many Mexican agri papers I go through it really doesn't seem they use it much if any. fruit fly is the main concern, and traps are the most effective control.

Also one must consider that even if a farmer is not certified organic, he may be completely organic by default, simply because all they use is manure, and don't spray anything , in places like Sinaloa its pretty dry, here in the DR in our SW area, humidity is low and they get very little rain, they have no problem with fungus there and do not spray,  using chemicals is just an added cost, and in the third world, organic fertilizer is actually cheaper in most cases.

Again I agree, if its labeled Organic, it should be 100% with no exceptions, no GMOs .   I would have hard time believing anything imported is organic, given that the hot water dip and hydrocooling water usually has chlorine in it to prevent fungal growth on the fruit.  But out of all the Imported fruits, I believe Mangoes are probably the least likely to have problems, compared to say,  Papaya or Peaches from S. America etc.

Tropicdude, you make some good points about post harvest treatments on so called organic fruits, although most municipal water to wash fruits will have some chlorine. I think though that fungicides are quite commonly used on mangos in Mexico as are flower promoters, and almost all of those are not organic. About being organic by default, most certifying agencies in the USA no longer allow this. You have to show in addition to being organic that you are actively doing something to improve the soil, not just miming it. Also in USA you can claim you are organic without certification as long as you sell less than $5,000/year and sell direct to consumer.
Oscar

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #13 on: June 28, 2012, 12:51:28 PM »
Quote
USA you can claim you are organic without certification as long as you sell less than $5,000/year and sell direct to consumer.

Cool i did not know this.

Its really difficult for the consumer to know with certainty  what they are getting, even if a product is certified Organic, there is no guarantee,  for example, lets say I want to use manure as fertilizer, that in itself doesn't mean much if the cows it came from were fed with chemical drenched food.  I cringe when I hear of blood and chicken manure being fed to cattle

As for cultural practices of mangoes, sadly I will see it becoming less organic in the future, the reason is, there is little motivation for large commercial farmers, the extra price they might get for organic produce does not compensate for the lesser production,  they already have plenty of buyers for their mangoes whether they are organic or not, the market is growing.

Some are moving into high density / ultra density systems, which will require growth retardants, and flowering stimulators.

BTW Fruitlovers i respect your experience, and knowledge, I am still on the learning curve in this hobby which I hope will be a business for me in a few years. I am trying to learn every aspect of this, my goal is to be as organic as possible, not because of any economic reason, but because of conscience and sustainability. 
William
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fruitlovers

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Re: Trader Joes selling Organic mangoes for .99 each.
« Reply #14 on: June 28, 2012, 06:04:00 PM »
Quote
USA you can claim you are organic without certification as long as you sell less than $5,000/year and sell direct to consumer.

Cool i did not know this.

Its really difficult for the consumer to know with certainty  what they are getting, even if a product is certified Organic, there is no guarantee,  for example, lets say I want to use manure as fertilizer, that in itself doesn't mean much if the cows it came from were fed with chemical drenched food.  I cringe when I hear of blood and chicken manure being fed to cattle

As for cultural practices of mangoes, sadly I will see it becoming less organic in the future, the reason is, there is little motivation for large commercial farmers, the extra price they might get for organic produce does not compensate for the lesser production,  they already have plenty of buyers for their mangoes whether they are organic or not, the market is growing.

Some are moving into high density / ultra density systems, which will require growth retardants, and flowering stimulators.

BTW Fruitlovers i respect your experience, and knowledge, I am still on the learning curve in this hobby which I hope will be a business for me in a few years. I am trying to learn every aspect of this, my goal is to be as organic as possible, not because of any economic reason, but because of conscience and sustainability.

You are right in that almost all manures applied are from cows and other animals that are fed chemicals, hormones, antibiotics. The certification rules don't address this and sadly they can't because if these were struck out almost nothing would be available to use in their place. A farmer has to start somewhere, so my thinking is it's ok to use these in beginning, but to shoot towards producing your own fertilizers on your own farm as much as possible, either through crop rotations of legumes or through use of animals you raise yourself and which produce manure. Again there is nothing in certification rules which promote or demand that a farmer become self sufficient in production of fertilizers = a totally closed loop system. Almost all farms require inputs from outside their farm which cannot be controlled as to quality or contamination. Also the production of manures and also chemical fertilizers has zero regulations, in other words the companines producing them can put just about anything in there and get away with it! There have been some companies exposed that were putting toxic waste materials in their fertilizers.
Oscar