Coca-cola Defends Corn Syrup After Trump Claims He Struck Cane Sugar Deal

The Coca-Cola institution has defended its usage of maize syrup aft Donald Trump’s declare Wednesday that he had apparently convinced nan marque to move to utilizing sweetener cane successful its US drinks, arsenic it does successful Mexico and nan UK.

“I person been speaking to Coca-Cola astir utilizing REAL Cane Sugar successful Coke successful nan United States, and they person agreed to do so. I’d for illustration to convey each of those successful authority astatine Coca-Cola,” Trump said successful a social media post precocious Tuesday.

“This will beryllium a very bully move by them — You’ll see. It’s conscionable better!”

Initially, nan drinks elephantine responded pinch a neutral connection of appreciation for “President Trump’s enthusiasm” for Coke, and a vague connection astir “new innovative offerings wrong our Coca-Cola merchandise range” to come.

On Thursday, however, nan soft drinks elephantine released an further connection making affirmative claims for high-fructose maize syrup, a merchandise that immoderate blasted for soaring US obesity rates and which has go a target of wellness caput Robert F Kennedy Jr’s Make America Healthy Again movement.

“The sanction sounds complex, but precocious fructose maize syrup (HFCS) – which we usage to sweeten immoderate of our beverages – is really conscionable a sweetener made from corn,” Coca-Cola said successful a statement. “It’s safe; it has astir nan aforesaid number of calories per serving arsenic array sweetener and is metabolized successful a akin measurement by your body.”

It added that nan American Medical Association “has confirmed that HFCS is nary much apt to lend to obesity than array sweetener aliases different full-calorie sweeteners”, and said: “Please beryllium assured that Coca-Cola marque soft drinks do not incorporate immoderate harmful substances.”

In 2023, the AMA released a statement saying it recognized “that astatine nan coming time, insufficient grounds exists to specifically restrict usage of precocious fructose maize syrup (HFCS) aliases different fructose-containing sweeteners successful nan nutrient proviso aliases to require nan usage of informing labels connected products containing HFCS”.

Trump’s alternatively abrupt introduction into nan Coca-Cola sweetener statement comes arsenic he struggles to move past a increasing contention complete nan merchandise of files relating to nan disgraced activity offender Jeffrey Epstein, a one-time friend of Trump’s.

The president’s precocious depletion of Diet Coke is well-documented, including nan installation of a reddish “Diet Coke button” adjacent his table that he tin property successful bid to summon a stafff personnel pinch nan drink.

Diet Coke contains neither maize syrup nor sweetener cane, but aspartame, a low-calorie artificial sweetener.

A move by Coca-Cola to utilizing sweetener cane could waste and acquisition implications for nan $285bn US soft drinks market. Coca-Cola successful Mexico is made pinch cane sweetener and packaged successful solid bottles. Some is imported into nan US, wherever it sells unofficially arsenic “Mexican Coke” astatine a premium complete its home counterpart.

In nan 1980s Coca-Cola’s US limb changed its formulation to usage high-fructose maize syrup, supported by US farming subsidies, and not imported sweetener cane subjected to import tariffs. But turning backmost nan timepiece could beryllium costly if Trump’s precocious US tariffs connected nations that nutrient sweetener cane proceed to apply.

Trump had antecedently fought pinch nan institution complete voting entree successful Georgia, wherever nan institution is based. But up of his 2nd inauguration arsenic president successful January of this year, nan company’s CEO, James Quincey, presented Trump pinch an Inaugural Diet Coke Bottle.