BOO! Trader joe's organic peanut butter change

[gabbygirl725]

Trader Joe has changed their organic peanut butter.
They are no longer using Valencia peanuts. The color is lighter and the taste is more bland. Now, it tastes just like every other organic peanut butter.

Shame on you Trader Joe. Your organic peanut butter, smooth and chunky, was delicious AND YOU BRAGGED, MADE WITH VALENCIA PEANUTS.

I'm not buying TJ's peanut butter any more--it's no longer any better than any other.

[Robert Lauriston]

Trader Joe's has a new line of organic peanut butter from a Canadian supplier. My local store had all four creamy / crunchy / unsalted / salted variations. It doesn't specify Valencia peanuts, but the salted crunchy is very similar to the one I used to like.

[goodhealthgourmet]

I tried the unsalted when I first spotted it back in March - the flavor was okay but I couldn't get past the texture. Do you find it to be chalky & unusually sticky? My thoughts here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/8924...

[Robert Lauriston]

Seemed no more sticky than the old stuff to me, definitely not chalky or dry.

[goodhealthgourmet]

Interesting - maybe I just tasted an off batch.

[Bax]

I've now had a jar of the chunky unsalted (which I bought accidentally -- just noticed the "chunky" and not the "unsalted" part) and a jar of the chunky salted. And weirdly, the unsalted was kind of chalky & dry somehow. The salted, on the other hand, was fine.

[goodhealthgourmet]

Thanks for weighing in - kinda nice to know it wasn't just me!

[Feta_Compli]

Why would you not make your own peanut butter anyway? All you need is a food processor, and it takes literally less than 5 minutes.

[goodhealthgourmet]

you say that as though everyone owns a food processor and has the desire to make their own peanut butter...neither of which is true.

it's also damn near impossible to find *organic* peanuts for purchase unless you're willing to buy in bulk online, and we were talking about organic peanut butter.

[tzurriz]

It would take me a lot longer than 5 minutes to shell all those peanuts!

[drmoze]

And cleaning the food processor afterwards as well? No thanks!!!!

[Feta_Compli]

Sorry, forgot that this wasn't the home cooking forum.

I find it worth the effort, however.

[Robert Lauriston]

There's a recall on Creamy Salted Valencia Peanut Butter (sku 97111), Valencia Peanut Butter with Roasted Flaxseeds (sku 98927) and Almond Butter with Roasted Flaxseeds (sku 94079).

http://www.traderjoes.com/about/custo...

Recall aside, the quality's not close to what it was a year ago.

[goodhealthgourmet]

yeah, there's another thread about it on the Media board, as well as discussion in a couple of other TJ's threads. FYI, the recall isn't limited to TJ's products. their supplier - Sunland Inc. - contracts with a number of companies, all of which have been affected...
http://vitals.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/...

[Robert Lauriston]

I tried three of Trader Joe's other peanut butters hoping to find a substitute.

The organic crunchy salted made from blanched nuts was bland and uninteresting. That's going back to the store.

The non-organic crunchy salted made from unblanched nuts was better but not much, that's going back, too.

The non-organic creamy salted made from unblanched Valencias was close in flavor to the discontinued organic, but I haven't seen crunchy, which I prefer. Also, it has twice the salt of the discontinued product, and seems overly salty. No health complaints about salt, I just feel like it steps on the peanut flavor. Good enough that I'll eat it, at least.

Is TJ's currently selling a crunchy Valencia peanut butter? Maybe I'll try the flaxseed one.

[Rilke]

Try the flaxseed one. It is delicious. I like the almond butter version as well.

[Robert Lauriston]

Has anyone seen the TJ's non-organic Valencia in crunchy?

I tried the Santa Cruz brand dark roast recommended in another topic (link below) as a substitute, not bad but not as good flavor as the TJ's creamy Valencia.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/7910...

[goodhealthgourmet]

sorry you didn't love the Santa Cruz, i suspect it's because they use Spanish peanuts which aren't as sweet as Valencias.

TJ's must have recently introduced a new line of organic Valencia PB (no flaxseeds) - i saw it on the shelf last week, and there was definitely a crunchy variety...unfortunately it comes in plastic jars which i try to avoid. but the roast did look much darker and more flavorful than that pale, insipid organic sea salt variety in the glass jars that was originally intended to replace the DC'd organic line we all loved.

[gabbygirl725]

Thanks for the info! I miss that organic Valencia crunchy PB. I'll look for it in my store in Scottsdale!

[Robert Lauriston]

They had both creamy and crunchy organic Valencia back in stock in Berkeley yesterday.

[crownedsparrow]

I heard a report on NPR about how horrible the peanut season was this year... prices just about doubled.

http://www.alligator.org/news/local/a...

[noya]

this topic has been well-covered. As I understand from the boards, TJs source for Valencia peanuts stopped producing.

[drmoze]

TJ's valencia peanut butter with roasted flax seeds is amazing. I don't care whether or not it says 'organic.' And somehow it never separated, and the texture from the fridge is very spreadable, not hard.

[noya]

it's not about whether a package says organic to most of us. The difference between organic and regular peanuts is significant, hence the search for delicious AND organic pb.

[cwdonald]

The rules as to what constitute certified organic are a joke. You think you are getting a better product but there is no guarantee and federal regulations really allow enough things to seep into an organic product that all it does is mean the store can have higher margins. Furthermore TJs or WF or Wegmans do nothing themselves to test for pesticide residue or water quality in the farms they choose to source from.. so buyer beware.

[Robert Lauriston]

I don't care that TJ's organic peanut butter is organic, only that it tastes the best.

The new version comes from Canada, which might or might not affect what the "organic" label means.

[Glencora]

The jar I bought this week is made with Valencia peanuts. Are you saying that it has *just* changed?

[gabbygirl725]

i checked with my TJs in Scottsdale, AZ. Their regular (non-organic) is still made with Valencia peanuts--at least in my store.

If their source for their delectable organic Valencia peanut butter is no more, TJ's is able to find another source. It would be great if they let us in on the news in their newsletter, or by posting it.

[Glencora]

Ah, I see. Mine isn't the organic. Now I wish I'd tried it.

[chompy]

I think the non-organic Valencia PB is pretty good. To me it's roughly comparable to the Organic Valencia PB that's been discontinued. But of course, not organic.

[noya]

Just saw our favorite PB back on the shelf at TJs. YAY!!!