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Donald Trump said Coca-Cola had agreed to use cane sugar in the production of the company’s signature beverage, in what would represent a major shift from its use of high fructose corn syrup as a sweetener in the US.
In a social media post on Wednesday, Trump said he had been speaking to Coca-Cola about “using REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the US, and they have agreed to do so”. He hailed it as a “good move” by the company, adding: “You’ll see. It’s just better.”
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment or post any public statements.
US-produced Coca-Cola uses high fructose corn syrup, a controversial sweetener made from corn starch that has been blamed for diabetes, weight gain and other diseases when consumed in large quantities. Its products made in Mexico, though, use cane sugar, which has resulted in so-called Mexican Coke being favoured by some consumers. Its special Kosher for Passover variation, known for its yellow tops, is also coveted by some consumers because it too uses sugar rather than corn syrup.
Coke used cane sugar in US production until the 1980s and continues to use it in most foreign bottling.
The move represents part of a broader crackdown by the White House and health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr on highly processed ingredients in food. Earlier this week, the Trump administration announced that dozens of ice cream companies, representing more than 90 per cent of the ice cream volume sold in the US, had pledged to stop using certified artificial colours in their frozen dairy products.
This is a developing story
