# Orange question **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 28, 2000, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443 "2000-03-28T19:37:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2000, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/1 "2000-03-28T19:37:00Z")
Okay, I hate to do it, but I need to know… I love those little mandarin orange segments you can buy in tins. If you look in the tin you’ll see that the skin that envelopes each segment has been carefully removed, leaving only the juice packed vesticules (?). How do they do that? Have you ever tried this with a real mandarin orange? Sure, they are easy to peal, but to remove the skin from each segment is hard. It would seem too delicate a task for a machine, and the segments vary greatly in size. I gotta know. They are mostly all from China, so I suppose it’s just slave labour, but if that’s the case then how come they haven’t been outed? I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time eating these very oranges and pondering this question. Now I’m back home eating the tinned variety and wondering still. Help me. * * * “Patriotism is the last refuge to which a scoundrel clings.” Bob Dylan ---
**Author:** ![Fyodor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/958977/32.png) [@Fyodor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fyodor)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2000, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/2 "2000-03-28T19:51:00Z")
WAG - there is probably some kind of pasteurization, or flash heat treatment, during the food canning process. The skin on the mandarin segments may be sensitive to heat and becomes much thinner or bonds to the pulp. If I had a fresh mandarin I could dip a segment quickly in boiling water to see the reaction before flapping my piehole on this thread but I don’t… Any cannery row workers out there? ---
**Author:** ![Whammo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8dc957/32.png) [@Whammo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whammo)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2000, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/3 "2000-03-28T20:37:00Z")
your probably right Al, if you blanche a tomatoe for a few seconds… the skin falls right off. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2000, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/4 "2000-03-28T21:50:00Z")
Oranges in a tin? Before I spend any brainpower on this question, I’m going to verify this on my next trip to the supermarket. I’ve never seen such a thing. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2000, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/5 "2000-03-28T23:23:00Z")
Even if they dip them in boiling water how does that get the skin of the segment? Take a look at one, it’s entirely sealed, ain’t mother nature grand? So it would also have to be pierced in some way. At any rate, it would have to be done by hand, I’m guessing, so why isn’t it expensive like, say, saffron. Also labour intensive to produce? I can’t imagine a machine that could perform such a task. Take a look in the tin and see if it doesn’t make you wonder. * * * Wisdom is the boobie prize,they give you when you’ve been --unwise! ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2000, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/6 "2000-03-29T01:50:00Z")
Previous discussions on this topic: [Mandarin Oranges](http://boards.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/002110.html) (GQ) [Mandarin Oranges, more questions](http://boards.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum4/HTML/000850.html) (MPSIMS) Judging by the OP of the GQ discussion(Specifically: \*I accidently posted this question to the MIS??? board by accident. \*), there was at least one other thread started on the subject in MPSIMS, but I was unable to find it. Apparently no progress was made. Did Dole never respond? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2000, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/7 "2000-03-29T05:03:00Z")
Thanks, Kat, for a second there I thought I was having deja vu and was checking out the date of the OP. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2000, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/8 "2000-03-29T17:14:00Z")
I confess, it was I who asked this once before, when I first came across this board. But I never got an answer and yesterday as I was opening a tin, I began to wonder. It’s so unlike the SD’ers to let a mystery go unsolved. I was surprised myself. I still haven’t really gained any insight. To me it’s a great mystery of life, at this point. I have asked a lot of intelligent people who don’t think it’s much of a question yet none of them can provide a clue to an answer. Usually they are skeptical and I’ve found you really must have a close look at both the fresh fruit and the tinned to maybe see what’s so curious. Gee, I thought the great minds of this board, in the time elapsed since this was first asked, would have surely stumbled upon the explanation and simply forgot to share it with me. Help. * * * Wisdom is the boobie prize,they give you when you’ve been --unwise! ---
**Author:** ![Ursa\_Major](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/a88e57/32.png) [@Ursa\_Major](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ursa_Major)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2000, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/9 "2000-03-29T17:30:00Z")
Okay, here’s some pictures from inside a plant that cans mandarin oranges. It looks to me like those women in white are peeling them by hand. [www.chinacannedfood.com/workshop.htm](http://www.chinacannedfood.com/workshop.htm) If you want to ask somebody who should know, here’s who to contact: Huangyan Mingqing Food Co.,Ltd. Add: 18 Lane 60 Yinshan Rd. Huangyan Zhejiang,China General Manager: Mr. Ye Deqiang Tel:+86-576-4227001 Fax:+86-576-4112219 Int’l Trade Dept: Tel:+86-576-4227256 Fax:+86-576-4112219 Contact: Mr. Daniel Hu Email : [hymq@mail.tzptt.zj.cn](mailto:hymq@mail.tzptt.zj.cn) Purchasing Dept: Tel:+86-576-4223437 Contact: Mr.Zhao chunhui ---
**Author:** ![Jois](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ea666f/32.png) [@Jois](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jois)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2000, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/10 "2000-03-29T17:55:00Z")
Great response! And wouldn’t they just love hearing from us! Thanks! 😉 * * * Are you driving with your eyes open or are you using The Force? - A. Foley ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2000, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/11 "2000-03-30T15:04:00Z")
Ursa, baby, you rule ! I bow down before you and your giant brain. I am AMAZED to confirm that they are indeed done by hand, how remarkable, and you can buy a tin for like $.79 ! Very impressive. I have, in fact, sent them an email to get more info, thanks for the link. Now that’s some Straight Dope! * * * Wisdom is the boobie prize,they give you when you’ve been --unwise! ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2000, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/orange-question/9443/12 "2000-03-31T01:48:00Z")
I’m sure you will all be happy to know that I’m a big doofus. I could’ve gotten elbows3 the answer to this 2 days ago. After posting those thread links, I went to the Dole page linked in one of them and filled out the Ask Us form, then went on my merry way. Never got a response from Dole, not Tuesday, not Wednesday, not today. The board went down for 10-15 minutes not too long ago, so I decided to check my Hotmail account to kill time (I normally only check it on weekends). (Anyone see what’s coming?) That’s right, I put down my Hotmail address as the contact address. Anyway, here’s what Dole says: > [@](#): > > From: [Dole\_Consumer\_Center@na.dole.com](mailto:Dole_Consumer_Center@na.dole.com) > To: [katx@hotmail.com](mailto:katx@hotmail.com) > Subject: Re: Mandarin Oranges > Date: Tue, 28 Mar 2000 18:44:57 -0700 > > Dear Kat: > > Thanks for contacting us about DOLE Mandarin Oranges. > > This product is cleaned in two different ways. If the oranges are sourced from China (most of DOLE Mandarin Oranges come from China), they are peeled and cleaned by hand. If they come from our suppliers in Spain, they are peeled and cleaned by machine. Incidentally, the white pith of the inner peel of citrus fruits is called the “albedo” or “mesocarp” just in case you’d like to wow your acquaintance with some fruit trivia!!! > > Have fun! > > Sincerely, > Karen Brill > Manager, Consumer Response > Dole Consumer Center > Westlake Village, CA I give the Dole people mondo points over the Starburst people. They responded the same day and actually answered the question.