How Government Policies Sweetened the US Food Supply

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a ubiquitous ingredient in many processed foods and beverages, but its widespread adoption was not driven by consumer demand or innovation.

Instead, it was largely due to a combination of government policies and economic factors. The discovery of the enzyme that converts glucose into fructose was made by chemists Richard Marshall and Earl Kooi in 1957, but it sat on the shelf for years until American corn production began outpacing demand.

The price gap between domestic corn prices and foreign cane sugar imports made switching to HFCS an attractive option for food manufacturers. Coca Cola was one of the first major companies to make the switch in 1980, followed closely by other beverage and snack companies.

By the mid-1980s, cane sugar had largely disappeared from mainstream American processed food, replaced almost entirely by corn. However, this shift has been linked to a rise in obesity, type 2 diabetes, and fatty liver disease across the country.