Corn Refiners Association Petitions FDA for High-Fructose Corn Syrup Name Change

According to a press release from the Corn Refiners Association (CRA) dated September 14, 2010 the CRA is seeking Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to allow manufacturers the option of using "corn sugar" as an alternative name for high fructose corn syrup. The CRA press release points out that high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has the same number of calories per gram as regular table sugar, and claims that it is "metabolized by the body in the same way." They state the goal of "eliminating consumer confusion." Such a name change would be helpful for the high fructose corn syrup manufacturers in the face of decreasing sales and bad press.

Bad Press for High Fructose Corn Syrup

A number of scientific papers have been published linking HFCS with obesity, triglyceride elevation and other ills. The consumer watchdog group, the Center for Science in the Public Interest, calls high-fructose corn syrup containing sodas "Liquid Candy" and is aggressively targeting the soft drink industry in an effort to reduce people's consumption of soda. Their efforts are working, as the United States Department of Agriculture commented in 2008 that annual high fructose corn syrup consumption per capita was continuing to decrease from its 1999 peak of 63.7 pounds per person.

The Corn Industry Champions HFCS

An extensive 2007 paper by Richard Forshee et al. attempts to discredit the obesity-HFCS link by critically examining the published studies on high-fructose corn syrup and obesity. In the disclosure section of the paper, four of the authors "Consult with and/or have received grants from multiple food and beverage companies." The paper claims that HFCS does not contribute any more to obesity than sucrose or other sugars by systematically attacking all the previous published work on high-fructose corn syrup. The funding of the authors by beverage manufacturers makes their motivation and analysis questionable.

The FDA's Position on Corn Sugar

According to the FDA, corn sugar, or dextrose, has a GRAS, or "Generally Regarded as Safe" designation. Their opinion, dated 1976, is that there is a risk of cavities from too much sugar consumption. Otherwise, corn sugar was considered to be safe at the levels it was consumed at in 1976. The FDA did allow for possible dangers in case of increased sugar and high-fructose corn syrup consumption with their statement,"it is not possible to determine without additional data, whether an increase in consumption-that would result if there were a significant increase in the total of corn sugar, corn syrup, invert sugar and sucrose added to foods-would constitute a dietary hazard."

The FDA's prediction was that high fructose corn syrup would replace sucrose in about 30% of its uses by 1985. This prediction proved accurate, and HFCS consumption continued to climb, as well as overall sweetener consumption. Before approving the Corn Refiners Association petition, the FDA will need to consider if there has been "a significant increase in the total of corn sugar" added to foods. Given the huge increase in high-fructose corn syrup consumption in the last 30 years, the FDA may not allow HFCS manufacturers to change the name.

Will a Name Change Save High Fructose Corn Syrup?

The Corn Refiners Association's petition for a name change from High-Fructose Corn Syrup to "Corn Sugar" is a desperate and likely ineffective move. The FDA may not consent to the name change, and HFCS has received enough publicity over the name change that "corn sugar" will be the newest ingredient for consumers to avoid. Consumer watchdog groups will continue to discourage consumption of all sweeteners, an effort that appears to be working. Overall sweetener consumption in the United States is decreasing as people turn to bottled water and diet drinks.

R.A. Forshee et al, "A Critical Examination of the Evidence Relating High Fructose Corn Syrup and Weight Gain" Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, www. sweetsurprise.com

"Corn Refiners Petition FDA for use of "Corn Sugar" as Alternate Name for High Fructose Corn Syrup", www.corn.org

"Database of Select Committee on GRAS Substances (SCOGS) Reviews - Corn Sugar (Dextrose)", fda.gov

Hodan Farah Wells and Jean C.Buzby, "High Fructose Corn Syrup Usage May be Leveling Off", www.ers.usda.org

Michael F. Jacobson, "Proposed Name Change for High-Fructose Corn Syrup Still Misleading", Center for Science in the Public Interest, cspinet.org

"Liquid Candy: How Soft Drinks are Harming America's Health", Center for Science in the Public Interest, cspinet.org