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Well, I used to buy Trader Joes nuts (I still have a few half bags left). My guess is that, right now, they are already pasteurizing almonds (that is what I have heard) so the raw almond butters (esp the non -organic) are probably not truely raw anymore (not that Trader Joes Raw nuts or butters ever were raw anyhow I am told)
I am not sure about the processing of their nut buttters. If I buy nut butters I normally buy raw organic and I haven’t ever bought Trader Joes but my guess is that Trader Joes does not germinate their nuts first. They just ground them up and I am sure the temps probably reach higher than allowed in our raw food diet. So, I am thinking that the enzyme are probably killed off. I mean, they make alot of that stuff and being raw isn’t Trader Joes main concern.So the quicker the butters get made the better – temps might not be taken into consideration.
I have no real source of this – is it just my guess based on what other raw foodists have told me about their raw nuts (they are starting to get some organic raw nuts in – I noticed that last time I went there) that they are not really raw. Sorry, it is disappointing I know. One friend said that most of Trader Joes nuts come from a regular nut company like Blue Diamond who might not be concerned with the “real” raw-ness of the nuts (as far as being careful about temps and such)
I was still buying cashews from them for a while even though I knew the cashews were not truly raw but if you are not a purist I guess that part isn’t really important.
I would be more worried about the pasteurization thing now. I am not going to buy any nuts from Trader Joes any more – butters or whole nuts.
Not sure if I answered your question but I hope I helped out a bit?
Yes, I thought the same thing, queenfluff. I figured when they were processed to a butter they would be exposed to heat. So, it’s basically like buy roasted almond butter – no? I wonder what the difference is there. Roasting requires heat. wonders Is it the process of heating that makes them different? ...but both still cooked.
Thanks for the reply.
Trader Joe's contracts with Maranatha whose "raw" almond butter is made from pasteurized almonds and is ground without regard to temperature. You are NOT getting a raw product from either company.
Even if nut butters are heated warmer than what we'd consider "raw" during the grinding process, they still are not heated to a temperature that's anywhere near as high as the roasting temperature for nuts. This makes a big difference in terms of flavor, and might make a difference in terms of the leukocytes produced upon eating, though I don't know for sure.
In any case, regardless of the grinding temperature, the process of grinding nuts into butter doesn't do anything to remove the enzyme inhibitors. I think.
Anyway, as far as I know, the Better Than Roasted butters are the only ones that soak and dehydrate their nuts before (low-temperature) grinding. There are a few other companies that use un-germinated nuts, but make a point of keeping the grinding temperature low; e.g., Artisana, Rejuvenative, Living Tree. I'm not sure about their policy on pasteurized vs. non-pasteurized almonds, though.
I purchased pasteurized raw almonds online. I soaked them and they sprouted so i consider them alive and still raw despite the pasteurization. I am looking for a way of making raw nut butter from soaked almonds via a low heat process without spending my savings on a high dollar machine.