What’s in a name? Trouble, if you make high-fructose corn syrup.
The New York Times reports that, according to the market research firm NPD Group, 58 percent of Americans say they are concerned that the sweetener — which food and beverage companies put into everything from bread to soft drinks — poses a health risk.
That image problem has spurred the Corn Refiners Association, the industry group representing syrup makers, to ask the Food and Drug Administration to re-name the ingredient “corn sugar.” The industry says that the name change, which already has been used in industry advertising, is needed to clear up consumer confusion about the product.
Nutrition experts acknowledge that the industry’s argument has merit, given the similarity between table sugar and corn syrup. Still, a name change wouldn’t do anything to address the health consequences of consuming the sweetener, one of the biggest sources of calories in the American diet.
Although research about whether the syrup disrupts normal metabolic function and thus aggravates obesity has been inconclusive, the Times reports, most leading scientists and nutrition experts agree that high-fructose corn syrup has the same health impact as regular sugar. In other words, too much of it is bad for you.
The FDA has six months to make an initial response, and a decision on whether to allow the name “corn sugar” on food labels could be as long as two years away.
