Settlement Reached On Sweeteners
November 23 2015 - 3:02AM
Dow Jones News
(FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 11/23/15)
By Jesse Newman
A billion-dollar battle over sweeteners came to a close on
Friday as big sugar companies and corn refiners, including Archer
Daniels Midland Co., said they had settled long-running litigation
over advertisements about high-fructose corn syrup. Terms of the
deal -- reached during the middle of a trial -- were confidential,
the companies said.
Leading sugar refiners, including Domino Sugar-owner ASR
Group,in 2011 sued the Corn Refiners Association for advertisements
using the term "corn sugar" to describe high-fructose corn syrup, a
widely used sweetener found in snack foods, condiments, fruit
drinks and other products.
The sugar companies argued that high-fructose corn syrup and
sugar are distinct products. They objected to the corn-industry
advertising campaign's description of high-fructose corn syrup as
"natural" and its claim that the ingredient was "nutritionally the
same as table sugar."
The sugar companies sought $1.5 billion in damages. The case in
a federal-district court in Los Angeles came amid growing anxiety
among consumers over sweeteners. That included high-fructose corn
syrup, which had become one of the most oft-seen ingredients on
grocery labels. Critics of the sweetener argue it has played a
starring role in the obesity problem in the U.S.
The two sides said in their joint statement they would "continue
their commitments to practices that encourage safe and healthful
use of their products, including moderation in the consumption of
table sugar, high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners."
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 23, 2015 02:47 ET (07:47 GMT)
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