1 week ago
4
President Donald Trump has long been a fan of Diet Coke, the zero-calorie beverage that is artificially sweetened with aspartame. During his first term, the President reportedly guzzled 12 Diet Cokes a day, and he has a dedicated button in the Oval Office to call for the soda.
Now, he wants Coca-Cola to use cane sugar.
“I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Wednesday afternoon. “This will be a very good move by them — You’ll see. It’s just better!”
Trump’s announcement did not offer further details, though his Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has pledged to crack down on ultra-processed foods that include sugary beverages and sweeteners as part of his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda. Coca-Cola has used corn syrup to sweeten most of its U.S. products since 1980 to reduce production costs against rising sugar prices. The syrup is also more shelf stable than regular sugar.
The Coca-Cola Company neither confirmed nor denied Trump’s announcement but said in a statement that it appreciates “President Trump’s enthusiasm” for the brand and that more details on “new innovative offerings” will be shared soon. TIME has reached out for comment.
Here’s what to know about Coca-Cola’s product line, cane sugar, and what it could mean for prices.
What sweeteners does Coca-Cola use?
The company’s original U.S. line of Coca-Cola (and its flavored versions) use corn syrup but Diet Coke and Coke Zero (and their flavored versions) use aspartame and other artificial sweeteners.
But Coca-Cola already has several offerings that use cane sugar, including Mexican Coke, or MexiCoke, which has developed a cult following. Coca-Cola began importing MexiCoke from Mexico in 2005—before that unauthorized independent dealers had brought it in across the border to sell. The company also makes a yellow-capped Kosher-for-Passover Coke and a “local tastes” line, which includes a Georgia peach flavor and a California raspberry flavor, that use cane sugar.
Coca-Cola has versions of its product in different countries that use more or less cane sugar and artificial sweeteners based on price and availability.
Is cane sugar healthier for you?
Kennedy has blamed high fructose corn syrup for the country’s obesity epidemic, describing it as “just a formula for making you obese and diabetic.”
“American kids did not suddenly get gluttonous and lazy,” he said during his Senate confirmation hearing on Jan. 30. “Something is poisoning them.”
Kennedy has proposed barring people from using food stamps to purchase soda and candy under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). He also plans to release new dietary guidelines before August that will encourage Americans to “eat whole food; eat the food that’s good for you.”
High fructose corn syrup has documented links to health issues, including obesity, but it isn’t necessarily worse for you than sugar, according to a study published in food science journal Frontiers in Nutrition. “Sugar is just sugar,” Lisa Sasson, a clinical professor at New York University’s Department of Nutrition and Food Studies, told TIME in 2014, when PepsiCo unveiled a “Made With Real Sugar” version in the U.S.
While many of Kennedy’s moves have been controversial, including his anti-vaccine stance, his views on high fructose corn syrup and ultra-processed foods are shared by some scientists and physicians. High fructose corn syrup consumption has already fallen steadily in the last two decades, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data. Even so, North America accounts for around 40% of the global market, which stands at almost $10 billion.
Could Coke become more expensive?
Swapping corn syrup for cane sugar would likely increase costs. One estimate in January by Investopedia using aggregated research suggests that switching from high fructose corn syrup to other sweeteners could cause the cost of certain products to increase by 10 to 15%. Moreover, Trump’s tariffs on the rest of the world, including a threatened 30% tariff on Mexico and 50% one on Brazil, might contribute further to higher prices, as both export cane and beet sugars to the U.S.
Higher production costs could be passed on to consumers, and products like MexiCoke that already use cane sugar are typically more expensive.
“Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar would cost thousands of American food manufacturing jobs, depress farm income, and boost imports of foreign sugar, all with no nutritional benefit,” said Corn Refiners Association President John Bode in a statement following Trump’s announcement.
English (US) · 