The 'Sweet Scam Lineup' ad produced by the Center for Consumer Freedom is one of many run by corn syrup manufacturers and food companies. They're running to combat what these industries see as myths about high fructose corn syrup. (Center for Consumer Freedom - screenshot)
High fructose corn syrup and sugar sweeten lots of food.
They’re in sweet stuff like soda-pop, but they’re also added to pasta sauce, gravy, bread, and other foods that don’t seem sweet.
Scientists are debating whether high fructose corn syrup is worse than sugar when it comes to making us fat.
But Shawn Allee reports high fructose corn syrup is losing ground before that science is finished.
Transcript
High fructose corn syrup and sugar sweeten lots of food.
They’re in sweet stuff like soda-pop, but they’re also added to pasta sauce, gravy, bread, and other foods that don’t seem sweet.
Scientists are debating whether high fructose corn syrup is worse than sugar when it comes to making us fat.
But Shawn Allee reports high fructose corn syrup is losing ground before that science is finished.
Let’s face it, most of us did not know high fructose corn syrup sweetened so much food.
We have no excuse now: the food industry sponsors ads like this one.
“sugar cube face forward.”
Here, a policeman lines up suspects.
There’s an ear of corn, a sugar cube, and a plastic honey-bear bottle.
The cop turns to the victim of the crime.
“… Do you see the one responsible for you gaining weight?”
“I’ve seen that high fructose corn syrup guy on the news. maybe it was him.”
“you mean you’re making all this up without any proof?”
At this point … the policeman lets the corn sweetener go.
The sugar cube and the honey bear bumble out, too.
“maybe it’s a sugar-cube. No, no, no. the honey bear!”
There’s a reason we’re seeing ads like this.
One market research survey showed more than half of consumers had “some concern” about corn syrup.
Some feel like the victim in that ad – they have this vague fear corn syrup’s worse for your waistline than sugar.
And they know scientists really are looking at this question.
“this particular study has stirred up extraordinary interest … much more than we expected.”
Dr. Bart Hoebel is from Princeton University.
A while ago his research team fed rats watered-down sugar.
Those rats didn’t get fat, but recently his team looked at what happened when rats drank watered-down corn syrup.
“The ones drinking fructose gained more weight … even though they’re taking in fewer calories there was something special or different about the high fructose corn syrup in that group.”
Hoebel says there’re several studies like his moving through the scientific pipeline.
They all look at whether eating high fructose corn syrup is worse than eating sugar … but he worries the public’s missing a big point.
Nearly all scientists agree we get too many calories from both corn syrup and sugar.
But … market research shows people miss the caveats and mixed results behind the science.
They’ve made up their minds.
“They’re looking for an ingredient that they know and sugar is a more recognizable ingredient.”
That’s Dr. Helen Jensen.
She studies food economics at Iowa State University.
She says some food companies don’t care if customers have the science right or wrong.
“so from the manufacturer’s point of view, they’re looking to make more product mixes that offer consumers the choice of having a sugar-based product.”
That’s why you’re seeing products that say sweetened with real sugar.
For example, the Pepsi company is pitching a sugar-version of Mountain-Dew while its regular version is still sweetened with corn syrup.
Other companies are switching, too.
Jensen says this is a big change.
“Tariffs raise the price of sugar. And subsidies for corn used to make corn syrup cheap.”
today it’s a little different. While sugar is still more expensive, it’s not as expensive as it used to be.
So, Jensen says if consumers are pushing a company to switch from corn syrup to sugar, the company just might pay more for ingredients to keep more customers.
But Jensen has a word of caution for people who hope sugar wins the battle over our sweet tooths.
She says countries like Australia sweeten a lot of food, too.
But they use almost no corn syrup … they use sugar, and Australians have gotten more and more obese, just like we have in the U-S.
For The Environment Report, I’m Shawn Allee.