HOT OFF THE HIGH FRUCTOSE FREE PRESS!
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CAUTION, READ THEIR LABEL!
Use our list to find soda pops that are high fructose corn syrup free. Be sure to confirm your selection at the market shelf as some soda products may change their ingredients. We urge product manufacturers to adopt the use of our uniform button for placement on their soda pop front labels that do not contain high fructose corn syrup but until that time confirm your selections and report any sodas that may be on our list yet may have slipped the syrup into their ingredients to us by clicking HERE to email us.

FINDING THE FREE USED TO BE SIMPLE!
Before High Fructose Corn Syrup began sneaking into food products it used to be simple. Products would proudly label themselves caffeine free, saccharin free, sugar free, gluten free, etc., yet now, the long confusing term of high fructose corn syrup has made trouble. The name high fructose corn syrup is almost as confusing as the syrup itself.

When looking for a caffeine free, gluten free or sugar free product all that we need to do is look at the front label and it is typically proudly announced on the front "Caffeine Free", etcetera. We adapt to this pattern language and learn what products are without caffeine and instinctively make choices that are correct. As consumers we have never needed to refer to the item as without caffeine or no caffeine as caffeine free rolled smoothly off of our tongues and the confusion was minimized. To me it seems simple, I desire to purchase products that are High Fructose Corn Syrup free or HFCS free. I don't think to say that I desire sodas without High Fructose Corn Syrup or without HFCS, or that do not contain high fructose corn syrup, this seems to be cumbersome and confusing yet others refer to these sodas in this manner. The pattern language of food product labeling is beginning to go off path, providing further confusion.

Many products proudly announced on their label that they are caffeine free, sugar free, gluten free and other natural substance free. The lack of a front label announcement for products that are high fructose corn syrup free with a standardized logo such as the HFCS FREE banner button may be due to the fact that High Fructose Corn Syrup is not natural yet is a highly processed substance. According to The Atlantic, the FDA never defining natural for processed food labeling purposes which furthers the confusion. My common sense definition eliminates does not allow high fructose corn syrup as it is a processed and is no longer a soda of the earth.

Many processed food manufactures offer several sodas within the same soda group so making the 'does not contain HFCS' or 'no high fructose corn syrup' or 'high fructose free' announcement on one label may appear to shame their other soda offerings that do contain high fructose corn syrup by drawing attention to them. This thought process may adversely affect their sodas that contain high fructose corn syrup. It breaks down to this, the food manufacturer's industry may be concerned that there will be a backlash against their sodas. Most soda manufacturers do typically respond to public pressure when they see fit to prevent a backlash yet with high fructose corn syrup the manufacturers are in a position that they feel is unique and are happy with the status quo. They don't understand that many consumers only desire to be able to readily locate the high fructose corn syrup free soda products that they desire and are not interested in shaming them for offering other products that do contain HFCS.

So how do we help the manufacturers of sodas that both do and do not contain high fructose corn syrup in their ingredients feel comfortable placing a banner on the front of their sodas that do not contain the syrup? The precedence that has been set over the last 50 years in soda labeling should be followed by referring to these sodas as being high fructose corn syrup free or for short, high fructose free, and HFCS FREE. This is sensible, will eliminate any associated label shame as it is following the pattern language of the processed food labeling industry.

As consumers we are concerned with the sodas that we consume, we are not looking to start a backlash, we will leave that to the scientists and reporters on television. Our concern is to easily locate the sodas that we desire to purchase and ensure that soda options that are high fructose corn syrup free or without high fructose corn syrup are readily available.

It will not be until consumer demand prompts soda manufacturers to provide a uniform button label on the front of their sodas in a visible placement that we see this action happen. As consumers we do not shame sodas that are not organic and do not contain the organic button yet we cherish the soda options that are proudly labeled as organic in a readily recognizable format. To be easily informed and be able to quickly make soda selections by finding foods that are made without high fructose corn syrup is the goal of HighFructoseFree.com and its list and upcoming search tools.

The concept that the more rare a soda is, the more value it has to it comes to mind when I search the market shelves for high fructose free sodas. Is there a mindset that consists in the food producers industry that dictates that limited offerings of sodas that do not contain high fructose corn syrup provide added value to those offerings? After all, when the list of ingredients is limited to five natural sodas the soda easily makes it from the market shelf to my pantry without any angst over the slight increase in price over the alternative. With one limited offering I can be made very happy, especially if I do not have to spend excessive time locating it in the market.

I have heard the phrases sodas that do not contain high fructose corn syrup, sodas with no high fructose corn syrup, sodas free of high fructose corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup free sodas, sodas without high fructose corn syrup, sodas without the ingredient high fructose corn syrup, sodas that do not contain high fructose corn syrup, sodas that are not made with high fructose corn syrup, sodas that are not sweetened with high fructose corn syrup and more. Additionally this is sometimes simplified by using the contraction HFCS in lieu of high fructose corn syrup. This results in a possibly simplified yet probably more complicated terminology resulting in sodas that do not contain HFCS, or sodas with no HFCS, sodas free of HFCS, HFCS free sodas, sodas without HFCS, sodas without the ingredient HFCS and more. Terms that I have heard yet are not so global are reduced HFCS or reduced high fructose corn syrup and low HFCS or low high fructose corn syrup.

When a consumer sees the word NO on a label an immediate message is sent, no means no, stop, retreat, do not, etc. The word no has a stand alone meaning that no matter what the remainder of the statement is the immediate connotation is negative. I recall seeing Hunt's ketchup with a giant corn colored yellow banner across the front that read "No High Fructose Corn Syrup" in a modern green color. The word NO was underlined on the banner drawing further attention to it. I immediately wondered how this wording slipped through the quality control department? I understood that the ketchup inside of the bottle was a product that I was looking for yet the NO and the oddly colored yellow banner background lead me to select another high fructose free ketchup from the shelf. To date the yellow banner is removed from this product yet the word No is still displayed on the Hunt's label.

There never was a class that taught us high fructose corn syrup terminology. In the early 1970's Pre-High Fructose Corn Syrup society sugar was the principle sweetener in the American diet. With cheap subsidized corn being available sweetener made from corn is now the principle sweetener for processed food sodas and that sweetener is High Fructose Corn Syrup. Without our knowledge it just sneaked up on us and into almost every food item imaginable. During the 1970's soda manufacturers discovered that high fructose corn syrup was a cheap sweetener that could replace natural sugar as a sweetener and profits skyrocketed. Slipping the syrup into the sodas became almost seamless, possibly the switches were made in increments over time so that the difference in taste was not detected. As in the new coke, classic coke scenario, this may have not been so seamless.

Today food sodas that are manufactured with HFCS are typically high calorie foods which can be sold at cheaper prices due to the abundance of subsidized corn and the resulting High Fructose Corn Syrup. The recipe was to replace expensive natural ingredients such as sugar with HFCS, the price to produce the soda was reduced yet the market shelf price continued to increase and profits soared.

So the jury is in on the proper terminology to use when requesting or discussing high fructose corn syrup. Following the pattern language of the labeling industry and calling these sodas high fructose corn syrup free should be used to prevent confusion and provide a standard for future discussions and soda selections.