Coca-Cola’s move comes a week after the White House issued a statement by President Trump saying he had been talking to the soft drink giant about using cane sugar rather than high-fructose corn syrup in its signature drink.
Corn Refiners Association President and CEO John Bode predicts that an increase in using U.S. cane sugar will lead to a rise in foreign cane sugar imports.
Bode said in a statement to NPR, “Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar would cost thousands of American food manufacturing jobs, depress farm income, and expand the trade deficit.”
Fuck HFCS & the US sugar program: they’re the textbook example of US protectionist policies that cost the US more than the benefits
The Department of Agriculture administers the U.S. sugar program to support domestic sugar production through tools such as limiting the supply of sugar.
The program creates higher sugar prices, which cost consumers more than producers benefit, at an annual cost to the economy of around $1 billion per year.
and reduce employment in industries dependent on sugar while fucking everyone’s health with shittier HFCS.
What about sugarbeets? Can’t the US grow those?
Yes, sugar beets used to be a staple in some areas I’ve lived in the Midwest, they’ll definitely grow here
I’m sure they could, hell, we grow them in Canada, that’s what Roger’s Sugar uses. Probably not as profitable as corn, especially with the biofuel subsidies.
So the flip side to this argument is that high fructose corn syrup is chosen by Coca Cola to prop up corn producers…?
Same as it ever was. Corporate socialism.
I know this was a completely empty thing and Trump will never do anything about it, but who was this really for? Does this threat even make any sense?
I want you to stop talking about Epstein so I’m going to anger a very specific part of my base? The people angry about Epstein are his chronically online base. I don’t imagine the corn farmer base even is aware of most of his online presence, let alone this outrage. Corn farmers being told the president is taking away a source of revenue are going to attend town halls, going to call and yell at their local elected officials, not tell people on Twitter to stop talking about Epstein because it’s going to crush their livelihoods.
I don’t think a lot of legal food can be considered poison, but both HFCS and sugar soda are really close. Also any other drink with heaps of sugar dumped into it. If you had to pour 40-50g of sugar into your glass you would likely not do it, but when someone else does it for you, you don’t have to think about it.
Alcohol is but we’re cool with it, apparently. lol
We at least don’t serve that to children generally.
Absolutely cannot disagree with this. Child obesity is a major issue and sugar is a major factor.
At least it had the historic use of preserving food back before we had refrigeration.
And before we learned to distill alcohol allowing us to feel the effects after far fewer drinks.
I would have thought people would stop drinking Coke if they had to sweeten it themselves, but I used to make Kool-Aid with 4floz (120ml) per half gallon (about 2 liters).
You measure sugar in fluid ounces?
A packet of Kool-Aid actually calls for a full cup of sugar (8 floz). So it’s even more nutritious than you thought!
I was going to say half cup, but ounces seemed more relatable in the moment.
The economics of sugar in the US are complicated, to say the least.
It sounds like Coke is just going to add Mexican Coke to their lineup of sodas, not like they’re going to stop producing HFCS Coke.
Florida is a huge sugar producer. The head office of Florida Crystals was in the same building in West Palm at the end of Clematis where I worked. The CEO would park his Ferrari FF in the cul de sac. This is nearly within view of Mar a Lago.
Well in 20 years Florida managed to lose about 90% of its oranges supposedly, and the Tomatoes were down 27% from 2023-2024.
Florida and California were 2 huge growers when it came to fruit… at this point though any practices made to attempt to save their growers would probably be hit with issues coming from Trump/Desantis pushing to arrest all the people working there.
Throw in reduced tourism and I imagine Florida may see some more struggles in the near future
Don’t forget about rising sea levels and flooding. Florida’s in for a tough future.
dont drink calories
dont tell me what to do
Don’t drink non-alcoholic calories
For some icing on the cake, the sucrose of cane sugar very quickly breaks down in coke into glucose and fructose, in more or less same proportions as in HFCS, so it kind of doesn’t change anything but the price, and which growers are happy.
Trump is a piece of shit regardless but cane sugar soda tastes undeniably better
Hard disagree. I prefer HFCS Coke. It’s a personal preference.
You’re certainly the first person I’ve heard that from
But seriously, how often does it come up? And how many people can’t tell the difference but just “know” that Mexican Coke is supposed to be better?
I mean, I’ve had this discussion a few times. You could be right that people know what is “supposed to be” true, but as for myself I taste the difference and the corn sugar tastes more boring, saccarine, and sticky in consistency. Cane sugar has slightly more depth and an “earthiness” to it. It’s not the biggest difference ever, but I will drop an extra dollar on mexican coke as a treat and I find it well worth the difference. Then again I don’t drink a ton of soda and maybe that has something to do with it?
I disagree about the saccharine-ness of the flavor. I think it’s the opposite. To me the corn syrup is more acidic and on the front of the tongue. The cane sugar is lighter, more on the back of the tongue, not nearly as far back as fake sugar, but heading in that direction. To me it’s like someone added a sprinkle of stevia. Not enough for me to hate it, but enough that I can tell.
I’d put it a step closer to Pepsi. It’s the kind of sweetness that wins all the “blind taste tests”, but I still don’t prefer it.
I grew up drinking way too much Coca-Cola, but nowadays I restrict myself and only have one with dinner sometimes. If they switch out the HFCS for cane sugar, I’ll switch to Dr. Pepper & Cream Soda exclusively, which is the only other soda I like.
Huh, well that’s interesting. Different strokes and all. I grew up in a house where soda was limited and usually caffeine free and diet (which I hated!) but maybe subconsciously I got used to some aspect of that sweetener!
I like how someone downvoted your for this opinion.
I swear the cane sugar Dr. Pepper tastes different from the HFCS kind. Maybe it really is possible to differentiate 50-50 glucose-fructose from 45-55 glucose-fructose? Or maybe the corn syrup carries other flavor molecules?
Or maybe there are other differences in the recipe.
So will we have to call it Mexican-American Coke?
Canadian coke is also sugar based so really you can just call it “modern coke”
Gonna be super fun with all y’all’s tarrifs tho
But I think it was originally sugar and they switched to HFCS because corn subsidies.
If so, then this is old coke.
Such a weird gambit. He’s gonna make Coke in the USA use the Mexican Coke recipe??
Well Mexican Coke is so much more expensive now, you know, with the tariffs.
