How to Tell if Your Fruit is Fresh

Why should you order fresh fruit from Hale Groves? With more nutrition than preserved fruits and fewer calories than juice, fresh fruits are an essential part of your and your family’s diet.

When you order fruits online from Hale Groves, you can be sure they’re fresher than fresh! People prefer ordering their fresh fruit online from us because of the Hale Guarantee, which states that if the gift you order doesn’t arrive fresh and perfect – if you and your gift recipients aren’t totally delighted – we’ll make it right. Unlike other gift companies, we don’t start picking your fruit until we receive your order, meaning every fresh fruit basket and fresh fruit box contains delicious, perfect fruits that are fresh from the tree.

You can trust that fresh fruit delivered from Hale Groves is the freshest possible – but how can you be sure? And what about fruit you’ve obtained elsewhere?

How to Tell if Your Fresh Fruit Gift is Really Fresh

You might think it takes a discerning eye to determine if fruits, but it’s actually quite easy. Here are four ways to tell how fresh and ripe your fruit is:

1. The weight of the individual fruits. As they ripen and become juicer, fruits become heavier. Fruits become heavier over time as they ripen and become juicier. If you’ve received a gift shipment of our famous Ruby Red Grapefruit, for instance, you can tell how fresh it is as soon as you pick it up – each plump, busting-with-sweet-juice grapefruit will make a pleasant weight in your palm. You can actually feel the freshness!
2. The fragrance of fresh fruit. Do you have a sensitive sniffer? You won’t need one with a perfectly ripe fruit, but go ahead and take a whiff of your fresh gifts, making sure to concentrate on the stem end. That “perfectly ripe” scent is unmistakable, especially in very juicy fruits like our Honey-Sweet Tangerines (which may even smell a tiny bit musty when they’re just right). Watch out for a vinegary smell, which indicates a fruit that’s overripe.
3. The firmness of the fruit. If the fruit is very firm, it’s probably not ripe – ripe fruit should “give” when gently squeezed, and should even a bit squishy. Unlike most of our fruit, though, keep in mind that fresh pears delivered from Hale Groves won’t arrive perfectly ripe – pears ripen best off the tree, so you may need to wait a day or two to enjoy them at their best.
4. The color of a fresh fruit. Typically, unripe fruit is green with a tinge of white. When it begins to ripen, fruit changes in color and becomes a brighter hue like red, orange, or yellow. Keep in mind, however, that this doesn’t always apply – for instance, the peels of an orange (like our Grove Navel Oranges) can have green spots but still be perfectly ripe and fresh.

Some Final Thoughts

Once you peel or bite into a fruit, the ripening process will come to a stop, so make sure you have a pretty good sense of their freshness before digging in. When it comes to Hale Groves fruit, it’s even easier – your fruit is still sweetening on the tree when you place your order, so it’s always as fresh as possible! Send a fruit basket to your friends and loved ones so they can taste the Hale Difference, too.

Shop Delicious Treats from Hale Groves

Hale Groves of Vero Beach, Florida, offers the best citrus and fruit gifts money can buy. Order some for your friends, family or yourself.

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