Coca-Cola announced on Tuesday that it will release a new version of Coke using cane sugar later this year days after President Trump said in a social media post that the company had agreed with him to do so.
“I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post last week. “I’d like to thank all of those in authority at Coca-Cola. This will be a very good move by them — You’ll see. It’s just better!” President Trump had said.
Confirming the decision in a press release, Coca-Cola said, “As part of its ongoing innovation agenda, this fall in the United States, the company plans to launch an offering made with U.S. cane sugar to expand its Trademark Coca-Cola product range,
“This addition is designed to complement the company’s strong core portfolio and offer more choices across occasions and preferences.” It concluded.
What is real cane sugar
Cane sugar comes from sugarcane plants and is a natural sugar made of glucose and fructose bonded together. Due to the price of obtaining it however, high-fructose cough syrup which is made from corn has been used as sweetener for Coke in America.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s secretary of Health and Human Services, has been a vocal critic of high-fructose corn syrup calling it “a formula for making you obese and diabetic”. Ingesting a lot of high-fructose corn syrup can put extra stress on the liver, which may lead to the risk of liver problems and other health issues over time. They can raise blood sugar and contribute to weight gain and inflammation, leading to chronic issues like heart disease and diabetes.
What is Used in Nigeria
In Nigeria, regular Coca-Cola typically uses sucrose from sugarcane, while Coca-Cola Zero uses aspartame and/or acesulfame potassium. In select African markets, Coca-Cola has also introduced reduced-sugar variants using stevia, a natural zero-calorie sweetener extracted from the stevia plant.
