POM Wonderful

Infobox Company
company_name = POM Wonderful, LLC
company_
company_type = Privately held company
foundation = Unknown
location = Los Angeles, California, United States of America
key_people = Stewart and Lynda Rae Resnick; Matthew Tupper (President)
industry = Foods
products = Fruit juices, tea, dietary supplements, fresh pomegranates
revenue =
operating_income =
net_income =
num_employees =
parent =
subsid =
homepage = [http://www.pomwonderful.com/ www.pomwonderful.com]
footnotes =

POM Wonderful, LLC is a privately owned company and brand of pomegranate juice, advertised as one of the most powerful naturally-occurring antioxidants. It is sold in distinctive double bulb-shaped clear plastic bottles. Its taste has been described as similar to cranberry juice. The company was founded by Stewart and Lynda Rae Resnick of the Roll International Corporation, who first became interested in pomegranates after purchasing a farmland property that included convert|100|acre|km2|1 of pomegranate trees in 1987.Fact|date=September 2008 For the first few years, the Resnicks simply sold their pomegranates, but eventually decided to begin producing and selling pomegranate juice as well. The company first released its pomegranate juice products beginning in 2002.Fact|date=September 2008

Pomegranates

POM Wonderful is made from the "Wonderful" variety of pomegranate, which is grown in the central and southern San Joaquin Valley of Central California.Cite web
url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2005/dec/11/foodanddrink3
title=Pomegranate Power
accessdate=2008-09-02
first=Andrew |last=Purvis
date=2005-12-11] The variety has a particularly sweet flavor in comparison with other varieties.

The pomegranates used to make POM Wonderful's products come from the convert|14000|acre|km2|0 of California orchards, including those owned and farmed by the company.Cite web
url=http://www.cfbf.com/agalert/AgAlertStory.cfm?ID=722&ck=C8ED21DB4F678F3B13B9D5EE16489088
title=Consumers develop a passion for all things pomegranate
accessdate=2008-09-02
first=Tracy |last=Sellers
date=2006-12-06] This makes POM Wonderful the only vertically integrated player in the pomegranate business.Cite web
url=http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2006/12/10/pomegranate_sows_seeds_of_popularity/
title=Pomegranate sows seeds of popularity
accessdate=2008-09-02
first=Jenn |last=Abelson
date=2006-12-10] The pomegranates are picked by hand to avoid damaging the delicate fruit. Each 16-ounce bottle contains the juice of five and a half pomegranates, with most of the fruits being used each ranging between 1/2 and 3/4 pound.

Extraction

In addition to farming the land, the company also operates its own pomegranate juicing facility, which uses custom-designed equipment to mechanically extract the juice from the freshly picked fruit, maximizing the content of polyphenol antioxidants while retaining the pomegranate's unique taste characteristics. This same facility also produces POMx by a proprietary, patent-pending method.

Products

The company's products include bottled pomegranate juice (reconstituted from concentrate, with added natural flavors) and juice blends (pomegranate juice blended with either blueberry, cherry, mango, or tangerine) in various sizes, as well as fresh pomegranates (which are available only when in season). The company also sells bottled tea infused with antioxidants derived from pomegranates. In an effort to further expand the popularity of its products, the company has also hired a mixologist to create a pomegranate martini. In 2007, the company started commercializing a concentrated polyphenol extract called POMx that is produced from the fruit using a proprietary process; this extract contains the same polyphenols as found in pomegranate juice.Cite web
url=http://www.pompills.com/liquid/product_liquid.aspx
title=Not for the faint of heart - POMx liquid
accessdate=2008-09-02
author:POM Wonderful LLC
date=2007]

In 2007, POM Wonderful launched a 100% pomegranate dietary supplement called POMx.Cite web
url=http://www.pomx.com/
title=Antioxidant Superpill
accessdate=2008-09-02
publisher=POM Wonderful LLC
date=2007] The supplement, which is available in both pill and liquid forms, can only be purchased directly through the company’s [website] and is not sold in retail stores. POMx is a super-concentrated form of the same polyphenol antioxidants found in the company's pomegranate juice, and it is also used as an ingredient in POM Tea.Cite web
url=http://www.pomwonderful.com/pomX.html
title=The antioxidant SuperSecret of POMx
accessdate=2008-09-02
Publisher=POM Wonderful LLC
date=2007] A single teaspoon of POMx liquid concentrate has the same polyphenol antioxidant content as 8 ounces of 100% pomegranate juice.Cite web
url=http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-07/pw-pro070706.php
title=Published research on POMx shows similar health benefits to pomegranate juice
accessdate=2008-09-02
first=Fiona|last=Posell
date=2006-07-10]

Packaging

POM Wonderful's products are known for their distinctive packaging. In addition to its trademark double-pomegranate plastic juice bottle, the company now offers a multi-serve bottle with its own distinctive style. From the front, this 48-ounce bottle looks identical to POM's three-pomegranate 24-ounce bottle. However, from the side it reveals a rectangular footprint with a full-size handle. The company's single-serve tea bottle had featured a unique design; the tea came in a drinking glass that could be re-used after consuming the tea. Cite web
url=http://www.innovationlab.eastman.com/InnovationLab/inspiration/POM/
title=Wonderful by name
accessdate=2008-09-02
publisher=Eastman Chemical COmpany
date=2008] As of May 2008, the company discontinued these unique glass bottles and now produces plastic bottles for their single-serve teas. [http://pomwonderfulblog.typepad.com/pom_wonderful/2008/05/announcing-pom.html]

Corporation

POM Wonderful is affiliated with Roll International Corporation of Los Angeles, California, as well as Teleflora and FIJI Water, and, until 2006, the Franklin Mint. Although POM Wonderful does not disclose its profits, "Newsweek" magazine reported annual sales of its juice have risen from $12 million in 2003 to $91 million in 2006.Fact|date=September 2008

In 2007, POM Wonderful was profiled on the Food Network program "Unwrapped".

ponsorship of research

Since its inception, POM Wonderful has provided funding in excess of US$23 million to support scientific research into the health giving properties of Wonderful variety pomegranates.Cite web
url=http://www.pompills.com/health_benefits/health_research.aspx
title=Research
accessdate=2008-09-02
publisher=POM Wonderful LLC
date=2007] This research has been conducted at leading universities around the world, including UCLA; Johns Hopkins; Tufts; University of Naples (Italy); Technion Institute (Israel); and the Universities of Colorado and Wisconsin.Cite web
url=http://www.pomwonderful.com/the_science.html
title=The Science of POM Wonderful
accessdate=2008-09-02
publisher=POM Wonderful LLC
date=2008] Twelve human clinical studies investigating POM Wonderful juice and extracts have been published in peer-reviewed medical journals. These preliminary studies showed promising results in conditions including heart disease, prostate cancer, diabetes, and erectile dysfunction.Cite web
url=http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-07/pw-pw1070207.php
title=POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice may improve erectile dysfunction
accessdate=2008-09-02
first=Pam=Last=Holmgren
date=2007-07-02] Additional research on these and other health areas is ongoing.

Animal testing controversy

POM Wonderful has spent over US$20 million (a nearly unprecedented amount for the food industry) to fund research into the health qualities of pomegranates. In some of the studies it has sponsored, researchers have used animal testing. In response, the company has received some negative publicity from animal rights activists, including following a campaign in 2006 sponsored by the animal rights group PETA, and supported by actress Pamela Anderson. In response, the company issued a statement that, " [n] either POM Wonderful nor its related entities provide funding for ongoing animal testing on POM Juice (or POM Tea). Moreover, there are no plans to do so in the future." [Cite web
url=http://www.peta.org/feat-pom-victory.asp
title=VICTORY: POM Promises to End Deadly Animal Tests!
accessdate=2008-09-02
publisher=People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
date=2007] In the face of criticism, POM Wonderful remained steadfast and even brought suit in 2006 against a group of activists who aggressively protested their actions.Cite web
url=http://www.greenisthenewred.com/blog/2006/09/11/pom-green-baiting/
title=POM Juice Company Joins “Eco-Terrorist” Scare-Mongering
accessdate=2008-09-02
first=Will|last=Potter
date=2006-02-11] POV-statement|date=September 2008

On January 17, 2007, Stewart and Lynda Resnick announced in a letter to POM Wonderful retailers that POM Wonderful would cease all further animal testing (besides an experiment scheduled to continue through June 30, 2007), after Whole Foods Market threatened to withdraw the product from its shelves.Cite web
url=http://www.energygrid.com/action/2007/01-pom.html#pomleter
title=POM WOnderful Announces Cessation of Animal Testing January 17, 2007
accessdate=2008-09-02
publisher=Energy Grid magazine
date=2007] At the time the company did not state whether they would rule out shifting the funding of future animal testing to the Stewart and Lynda Resnick Trust or another entity they control.

In late January, 2007, PETA announced the end of its campaign against POM Wonderful when the company provided final assurances that none of its affiliates would fund animal testing either. As of March 2007, POM Wonderful's official website only cites non-animal studies as evidence of the health benefits of POM Wonderful - Wonderful variety pomegranates.

References

*Abelson, Jenn. "Pomegranate Sows Seeds of Popularity." "The Boston Globe", December 10, 2006, Metro section, p. A1.
*Garrison, Jessica. "Activists Target Juice Company." "Los Angeles Times", September 10, 2006, Metro section, Part B, p. 6.
*Mozingo, Joe. "Santa Monica and FBI Target Animal Activists." "Los Angeles Times", November 3, 2006. Metro section, Part B, p. 4.

External links

* [http://www.pomwonderful.com/ POM Wonderful - Official Site]
* [http://pomwonderfulblog.typepad.com/ POM Wonderful Blog]
* [http://www.pomwonderful.com/pom_in_the_news.html POM Wonderful Press]
* [http://www.pompills.com/ POMx - Official Site]
* [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14096868/site/newsweek/ "A Winning Equation"] by Andrew Murr, "Newsweek", August 7, 2006