Rooting out the difference of baby carrots

"Baby carrots" awe...sounds so cute, sweet, and precious. Are they little versions of adult carrots? Yes and no. A "true" baby carrot is a carrot grown to the "baby stage", which is to say long before the root reaches its mature size.  The test is can you see a proper "shoulder" on each carrot. They are sometimes harvested simply as the result of crop thinning, but are also grown to this size as a specialty crop. There is also a baby variety called Thumbelina, or Paris Market shaped like a golf ball. 

These are real baby carrots.

Most of the "baby carrots" we buy pre-bagged  are simply regular reject carrots that are chopped and processed. They usually are more convenient for people, and look a little nicer than their rustic long and crooked parents. However, has anyone noticed that they taste different? Sources swear there is no difference but I disagree. So here's the low-down:

Baby carrots are not as nutritious as full whole carrots, because a lot of the goodness in carrots is contained in the skin and just below it. This is removed in the baby carrot making process. In addition, baby carrots are made out of a variety of carrot known as the Imperator. They are bred to grow faster and ripen quickly, and because of this, they only have 70% of the beta carotene of a normal carrot. To worsen the situation, after harvesting, the carrots are mainly washed in chlorinated water, just like our drinking water, and cleaned to remove dirt and mud. Some finished baby carrots are washed, or dipped, by a further chlorine solution to prevent white blushing once in the store. The chlorine wash that's recommended by the FDA is to kill bacteria such as salmonella and E. coli. 

Cost vs. convenience: Baby-cut carrot sales have fallen with the economy, as people cut back by cutting their own (seriously, why not?). Think about this, a 1-pound bag of organic carrots costs $1.49 and several 1-pound bags of organic baby carrots for $2.29 each.

Baby carrots: 80 to 86 carrots per bag. Based on an average of 83, that's just under 3 cents each.

Whole carrots:  Cutting each carrot into four sticks took about 20 seconds per carrot. But with a yield of 104 carrot sticks, that was a cost of 1 cent each.

Conclusion: Baby carrots are quicker, but they cost three times as much per stick.

Solution? You can pretty much chop up a bigger carrot (or just break it in half) to fit in a small tupperware container or plastic baggy like you use for baby carrots. Dunk skin and all in hummus, ranch dressing, and munch like bugs bunny!


To read a full history on the birthing of the baby carrot click HERE.