The Cuties trademark is owned by Sun Pacific.Why the different names? Branding! The names are not varieties, but trademarked names, encouraging the consumer to look specifically for Cuties or Halos. WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT CLEMENTINE NAMES ALL ABOUT? That’s why we prefer mandarins like Halos to navel oranges, which are a a spin on the sweetness roulette wheel.

The mandarin from California are reliably sweet and usually seedless.

They are in the genus/species Citrus reticulata.

Mandarins are small and roundish with flatness on the top and bottom, and a loose, easy-to-peel skin.

Sometimes they’re sweet, and sometimes they aren’t you don’t know until you buy and try.

Citrus sinensis, the sweet orange group, includes the common sweet orange, blood orange, and navel orange). They are in the genus Citrus, with separate species (e.g.

Oranges are medium to large round or ovoid shapes covered with a thick peel that can take time to remove.

The orange is a cross between a mandarin and a pomelo, created long ago in China. YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MANDARINS & ORANGESįrom a hybridization perspective, the mandarin is a progenitor of the orange*. Here’s the difference (Produce Pete and Wikipedia take note!). While both are from the genus Citrus, mandarins are a different species, just like broccoli and cabbage-both members of the genus Brassica-are different species. Halos, Cuties, and Sweeties are mandarins from California, different brand names for what are often clementines. Welcome to the world of single-serving, easy to peel, sweet and juicy-and branded-citrus. Nota bene: mandarins are not oranges, but a different species.

Depending on the store, you can find clementines, Cuties, Halos, Dimples, tangerines and mandarin “oranges.” In addition to flavor and nutrition, they keep us from eating refined sugar snacks. A yogurt parfait with clementine mandarins and raspberries (photo © Hannah Kaminsky | Bittersweet Blog).Īpril is the end of the season for the sweet little mandarins called Halos. Keep a bowl of Halos or other mandarins on your kitchen counter, for a nutritious, 35-calorie grab-and-go snack (photos #1 and #2 © Wonderful Foods).

Halos clementines