Over a year and a half ago, I wrote an entry regarding the discovery of trace amounts of mercury in high-fructose corn syrup. Since that time, I’ve seen an increasing number of products switching back to good old-fashioned sugar. That is encouraging.
Personally, I do not drink soft drinks because soft drink companies are among the largest producers of HFCS-laden products. Recently, however, I saw a 20 oz. bottle of Limited Edition Pepsi-Cola while standing at the checkout. I picked it up and read the ingredients, which included sugar, but NOT high-fructose corn syrup! Also, there was no sodium benzoate (which, through digestion, produces benzene, a known carcinogen). I bought it. I know, I know! Sugar is not good for you in any form, but let’s face it, I have a sweet tooth. The soda was delicious and I immediately noticed that it didn’t have the weird metallic aftertaste I’ve noticed before when drinking colas.
Because I would rather see soda companies make the switch from HFCS to sugar, and because certain restaurants like Jason’s Deli are being met with resistance from soft drink companies to make this switch, I thought I would go to Pepsi.com and put my $.02 in. Here was my short and sugar-sweet comment:
Several years ago, I stopped consuming colas and soft drinks because the use of high-fructose corn syrup was ubiquitous. The other day, standing in the checkout lane of our neighborhood grocery store, I saw a “Limited Edition” Pepsi-Cola sweetened with good old-fashioned sugar. I purchased it and it was delicious. I thought I should tell you that I would purchase Pepsi products if they contained sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup. Until then, like your promotional Pepsi-Cola, I will be a “Limited Edition” customer.
Sincerely,
Joseph
On 9/24/10, the Pepsi team responded:
Dear Joseph,
Thank you for taking the time to contact us at Pepsi-Cola to tell us that you are enjoying Pepsi Throwback. It means so much to us when we receive such positive feedback from those whose opinion matters the most—our customers!
Your feedback is important to us. Even though there are no current plans to reintroduce this product, I’ll be sure to share your comments with our beverage team for future consideration.
Thanks again for your message. We appreciate your interest in our company and our products.
Julieann Benes
Consumer Relations Representative
As consumers, we can help steer this change. Feel free to stop by Pepsi.com or any of your favorite manufacturers and urge them to remove this unnatural ingredient from their products. If you read your labels like any good, health-conscious consumer should, you’ll find that it is everywhere.
With One Breath 