Minute Maid, the juice drink produced by The Coca-Cola Company, is already positioned as a healthy drink containing calcium, potassium and folate, among others, but a new agreement with the Mayo Clinic means that Minute Maid consumers can now get broader health advice, just from reading the carton.
Minute Maid already works with the Mayo Clinic, sponsoring its health and nutrition pages on the website, but now the roles will be reversed, with Mayo Clinic health advice featuring 64 fluid ounce cartons of Minute Maid Premium orange juice.
Mayo's consumer website provides current and accurate nutrition guidelines people can use to improve their lives, and its research indicates that consumers welcome having nutrition information offered to them on product packaging, providing that it comes from a trusted, recognised source.
"Bringing reliable information to consumers, at their family table, is a practical way to influence health behaviours," said Patricia Simmons, chair of Mayo Medical Ventures Executive Board.
"Minute Maid offers beverages for healthy living, so it's an ideal fit for us," said Don Knauss, president and CEO of Minute Maid North America.
The side panel of the 64 fluid ounce cartons of Minute Maid Premium orange juice includes information on a range of topics such as heart health, digestion, immunity, stress management, bone health and weight management. The topics will rotate throughout the year so there will always be new information for consumers to read, Knauss added.
The information will also feature on the Mayo Clinic's website, which also offers information disease prevention, special diets, vitamins, minerals and herbs, healthy shopping strategies, recipes and cooking tips. The co-operation between the two companies will also be highlighted in Minute Maid print ads, point of purchase materials and on the Minute Maid website.
As yet there has been no indication as to whether this arrangement, or similar ones, will be extended to countries other than the US, but Minute Maid is sold in many countries worldwide, and plays heavily on its health benefits wherever it is sold.
And of course a desire to eat well and live healthily is not limited to the US (though some may argue that the high levels of obesity and diabetes there mean that citizens in the US have more need than others for good advice about how to eat well), so increased nutritional information on Minute Maid packaging throughout the world cannot be ruled out.