Would sugar by any other name be as sweet?
A coalition of groups sent a letter to the Food and Drug Administration Tuesday opposing a proposal by manufacturers to call high-fructose corn syrup "corn sugar" instead. The coalition says consumers are against the name change by 100-to-1.
The ubiquitous sweetener has a bad rap in some circles, and the groups say the new name is just a ploy to confuse consumers who want to avoid it.
The Corn Refiners Association petitioned the FDA in 2010 to allow "corn sugar" as an alternate name to high-fructose corn syrup in mandatory ingredient lists on food packages. The petition said "many consumers are confused and misled by the ingredient name" and mistakenly believe high fructose corn syrup is high in fructose compared with other sweeteners such as sugar, honey and fruit juice concentrates.
The petition went on to say that the new name would "promote honesty and fair dealing in the interest of consumers."
Not so, says Chris Waldrop of the Consumer Federation of America, one of the groups that put out the statement. The corn refiners are "just trying to fool consumers," he says.
High-fructose corn syrup has been decried by some in the food-and-nutrition world as inherently different from sugar made from sugar cane or beets, and more likely to cause obesity. That has led some consumers to avoid it.
Waldrop and many nutritionists say there is little evidence the body treats corn syrup and table sugar differently. But, he says, if consumers don't want to eat foods containing high-fructose corn syrup, that should be their decision.
The name change would be "deceptive, and we don't think it's an appropriate way to deal with consumer concerns." His organization worries that consumers might think high-fructose corn syrup has been taken out of a product when in fact "the name was just changed -- and that's not fair."
In an unrelated lawsuit, sugar producers are suing corn refiners, saying ads that call high-fructose corn syrup "nutritionally the same as table sugar" are false and misleading.
In a letter to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg on Tuesday, four consumer groups said nearly 5,000 consumers have written to the FDA to oppose the name change. Only 40 supported it.
Table sugar is made up of 50% fructose and 50% glucose. High-fructose corn syrup is made by adding enzymes to corn starch to change some of the glucose to fructose. The most common variety is 45% fructose and 55% glucose. Sugar and high-fructose corn syrup each contain 15 calories per teaspoon.
The corn refiners group has science on its side, "but so what?" says Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University. "This isn't about science, this is about people eating too much sugar" of all kinds -- 120 pounds a year -- leading to obesity, diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
"Corn sugar" could help people watch "their intake of added sugars," the Corn Refiners Association said in a statement.
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