Corn Refiners Association

Examining retail and cost implications when changing sweetening ingredients in food processing

Date and Time: December 10, 2010 at 2:30pm CT

How much can switching sweetening ingredients (such as a switch from high fructose corn syrup to granulated or liquid sugar) impact costs for food and beverage manufacturers? And does switching pay off at retail? The increased ingredient costs are only the beginning.

During this webcast we will:

Examine the retail and cost implications when changing sweetening ingredients in food processing Discuss capital expenditures and the possible costs associated with the environmental implications of switching sweeteners Explore sales data from Nielsen, looking specifically at brands that have reformulated from HFCS to sugar and compare pre- and post-reformulation data Engage in a live question-and-answer session.

How much do shoppers care about added sugars, including HFCS? How do they make their purchase decisions?

Original Air Date: November 18, 2010

The Webcast profiled shoppers, their interest in added sugars and ingredient labeling, and their actual purchase behaviors. It also reviewed scientific data on the composition, caloric content and metabolism of added sugars.

The webcast discussed:

Recent research on grocery-shopping women and the factors that influence their purchase decisions An emphasis on purchase behaviors that pertain to added sugars such as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)

Q. Does the over consumption of HFCS has anything to do with the high number of diabetics in the USA (since HFCS is used in many foods etc)?

A. This question makes a common, but false, assumption at the outset. A myth persists that HFCS is over-consumed, presumably in comparison to sugar. Not so. In the US, we have always consumed more sugar than HFCS. HFCS consumption has declined since 1999; we're now consuming levels of HFCS last seen in 1992. The association between HFCS consumption and rising rates of obesity (and diabetes) fell apart 12 years ago and with it, the hypothesis of George Bray and associates that HFCS is uniquely responsible for obesity.

There is simply no credible scientific evidence that HFCS is uniquely responsible for diabetes or obesity. There is lots of credible scientific evidence that HFCS is handled by the body the same way sugar is. And there is compelling nutrient intake data showing that it is the intake of far too many calories in the diet, principally from added fats and cereals/starches, that has led to rising rates of obesity and diabetes...not sugar and HFCS.

Q. Could you please provide more details and use of corn syrup in different areas?

A. It is unclear whether the inquiry is about regular, glucose-based corn syrups or is really asking about high fructose corn syrup, the topic of our webinar. I think the best way to answer both is by reference to CRA's excellent technical bulletin, "Nutritive Sweeteners from Corn." This bulletin covers both products and is available online as a downloadable pdf document at http://www.corn.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/NSFC2006.pdf . The following sections will be particularly useful:

Product definitions - p. 9
Manufacture - p. 18-20
General characteristics - p. 21-24
Applications
Text - p. 25-34
Table II - p. 28-29

Q. You claim that HFCS and sucrose (table sugar) are equivalent. In what ways?

A. HFCS and sucrose are built from the same sugars - fructose and glucose - in nearly equivalent amounts but in a slightly different way. The sugars are monosaccharides (free or unbonded) in HFCS; in sucrose, the sugars are chemically bonded to make a disaccharide. The ratio of fructose-to-glucose is 50:50 in sucrose, and either 55:45 or 42:58 in HFCS. The bonded vs unbonded condition and slightly different ratios of fructose and glucose at one time were postulated to be significant differences between sucrose and HFCS, however, comparative studies have shown that the human body cannot distinguish them.

HFCS and sucrose are also equivalent in energy (approximately 4 kcalories/gram), sweetness and metabolism. Controlled clinical trials have demonstrated that HFCS and sucrose are equivalent by every metabolic parameter yet measured including serum glucose and insulin, the appetite hormones ghrelin and leptin, triglycerides, uric acid and sensory measures of appetite and satiety.

Finally, HFCS and sucrose are similar in manufacture. In order to ensure they are of suitable purity for use in foods and beverages, both are purified and refined using common manufacturing methods. And both qualify as natural ingredients under FDA guidelines.

Q. What is the essential difference between dextrose and High Fructose Corn Syrup especially when formulating a French dressing sauce?

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and dextrose (glucose) are different in two respects: composition and functionality.

• Composition: Dextrose is the industry synonym for glucose. High fructose corn syrup is either 42% (HFCS-42) or 55% (HFCS-55) fructose, with the remainder comprised of glucose and small glucose chains; these latter are readily hydrolyzed to glucose by salivary and intestinal enzymes, so are treated by the body as glucose.
• Functionality: Dextrose is largely a low functionality product - low sweetness (65 compared to sucrose (sugar) at 100), low moisture control and low solubility. High fructose corn syrup is a high functionality product - it has sweetness comparable to sucrose (92 for HFCS-42 or 99 for HFCS-55), good moisture control and higher solubility. It also enhances spice and fruit flavors and, because of its moisture binding, extends product freshness and retards spoilage.

Q. Is there still a 20% tax imposed in Mexico?

A. The so called "soda tax: imposed by the Mexican government was found to be WTO illegal and was removed. No further impediments exist for U.S. high fructose corn syrup exports to Mexico as sweetener trade under the NAFTA is fully liberalized.

Q. I've heard a lot about HFCS in the news recently. Is it still safe for my customers?

A. Despite what you've heard in the news, HFCS is still the same safe sweetener it has been for 40 years. And scientists knowledgeable about caloric sweeteners now agree that HFCS and sucrose (table sugar) are nutritionally indistinguishable. This simply means the human body can't tell them apart. Both HFCS and sucrose have Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status from the US Food and Drug Administration, and both have been judged nutritionally equivalent by recent independent expert panels and respected nutritionists. HFCS is still a safe and economical choice for food and beverage manufacturers.

Q. I see my competitors reformulating to sucrose and making "no HFCS" claims on their packaging. Does their product truly offer consumers improved nutrition?

A. Reformulation from HFCS to some other caloric sweetener - most often sucrose - does nothing to improve the nutritional quality of a product because of the similarity in composition of caloric sweeteners. A "contains no HFCS" label can seriously mislead customers into thinking the reformulated product somehow offers a nutritional advantage when it does not. Reformulation invariably increases manufacturing costs due to higher sucrose costs, need for new capital investment and increased sanitation, labor and quality control costs. And manufacturers who have reformulated from HFCS to sucrose report shortened product shelf-life and no improvement in market share. There may be legitimate reasons for reformulating away from HFCS, but product safety concerns or improved market share are not among them.