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Mom Bloggers Paid to Promote High Fructose Corn Syrup: Why Wasn't I Invited?
The corn industry has solicited mothers to help support the idea that high fructose corn syrup is a healthy part of the American diet.
Mom Bloggers Paid to Promote High Fructose Corn Syrup: Why Wasn't I Invited?
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Earlier this month, the Corn Refiners Association, an industry trade group, invited some mom bloggers to listen in on a conference call about high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).
The call, which was organized in conjunction with a web site called Mom Central, has stirred up some controversy in the mommy blogging world, with some of the participants writing about it in return for $50 gift cards.
Other bloggers turned down the invitation, citing ideological opposition to accepting money from the Corn Refiners Association in return for advertising all the wonderful aspects of consuming HFCS.
I must say, my feelings were really hurt when I found out I wasn't invited to the corn syrup propaganda party. Though I'm still trying to get over my disappointment—like a teenager who didn't get invited to the popular girl's sweet 16—it seems that I didn't miss anything particularly enlightening.
Desiree Peeples of Mommy Reporter said that she declined the offer because the Corn Refiners Association was "pimping" bloggers and promoting claims that HFCS is "harmless in moderation and not any more damaging to health than say, cane sugar or honey."
Jessica Gottlieb, another mom blogger, also chose not to participate in the call because she believes that real food has "roots or a mother."
But other bloggers weren't so discerning. Take Hil'Lesha, blogger at To the Motherhood, where she said that the conference call made her think about all of the foods in her pantry that contains different types of sugar and while she's "not sure what to think" about claims that HFCS isn't harmful to one's health, she said she would keep their opinions in mind.
The Corn Refiners Association's blog tour is the most recent tactic used to help put HFCS on an equal playing ground with refined sugar, honey and even agave nectar. The campaign started in 2008 as many large food companies, at the behest of consumers fearful of the detrimental health effects of consuming corn syrup, stopped using HFCS in their foods.
They've so far used a media blitz (see this amusing commercial that implies that corn syrup is natural and healthy) and lobbied the FDA to allow HFCS to be renamed "corn sugar". Most recently they've appealed to mothers to spread the message that corn syrup...ahem...corn sugar, is healthy in small doses.
But it's questionable whether the tactics have been effective.
According to the USDA's Economic Research Service, HFCS consumption in the US peaked in 1999, with per capita consumption at 45.4 pounds each year, which equates to about 215 calories daily.
In the decade since Americans have significantly decreased their HFCS consumption to 35.7 pounds a year, or 169 calories a day.
In my opinion there's no question that America's obesity epidemic is directly correlated with the use of HFCS in foods. While the Corn Refiners Association has scientists working on their side, many studies have linked HFCS consumption to health ailments ranging from obesity to diabetes to cancer.
There's a side of this though that I haven't come across in the blogging world: The fact that 86 percent of all U.S. corn is genetically modified is something I wrote about for a recent Green Parenting column and an issue that's been largely absent in this debate.
The Corn Refiners Association says that 56 percent of all American sweeteners are derived from corn, but what they fail to mention is that nearly all of that corn is genetically modified.
I'm sure they could, with a little help from Monsanto, give you 100 reasons why genetically modified corn is no different than regular corn. And while the health effects of consuming this corn have yet to be researched in the long-term, the U.S. government has not mandated manufacturers to disclose whether its genetically modified or not.
As a mommy blogger myself, the best message I can send to readers isn't one "pimped" to me from an industry trade group in return for 50 bucks, but one that's promoting the health and wellbeing of consumers.
In the name of healthy children, healthy food and a healthy planet, I urge you to boycott foods that contain HFCS.
And don't worry—everyone's invited!
Thanks. We'll email you the next time we update this story.
Jessica Gottlieb
7:42 pm on Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Thank you so much for the kind mention. I actually was not invited to participate, nor would I ever be invited as Mom Central is a consulting firm that I have no relationship with. I have a lot to say about food safety (yes this is a safety issue), and about mom blogging, but I never have, and I never will work with Mom Central.
Thank you.
Jaclyn Bruntfield
10:26 am on Thursday, October 14, 2010
Thanks for the clarification, Jessica. I agree that the presence of HFCS in processed foods is a safety issue, so here's to using our respective writing venues to raise awareness about what mothers (and our children) are up against!
All the best,
Jaclyn
FreshGreenKim
5:28 pm on Thursday, October 14, 2010
I wasn't invited either, but perhaps it has more to do with the fact that over a year ago I exchanged emails with the Corn Refiners' president and requested a sample of this "safe and just the same as sugar" product to test in my home recipes, and received no reply?
I've issued the same challenge virally, and only received form responses. If you're interested in following the progress, it can be found on my blogpost here:
http://ourdailygreenlife.blogspot.com/2010/10/corn-sugar-smackdown-update.html
Jaclyn Bruntfield
11:14 am on Friday, October 15, 2010
Kim, Thanks for your feedback. I checked out your blog and really enjoyed your post today on raising awareness for clean water around the world.
Good luck on your quest to get that free "corn sugar" sample! :)
Best,
Jaclyn
Therese
5:00 pm on Monday, October 18, 2010
I would like to clarify a few misperceptions in relation to the educational campaign we conducted with bloggers. We did not reach out to bloggers “to help support the idea that high fructose corn syrup is a healthy part of the American diet.” We reached out to bloggers to respond to questions and to address the misinformation that exists when it comes to added sugars. The webinar is publicly available at www.cornsugar.com/momcentral for anyone to see.
We also did not compensate the bloggers with a $50 gift card for their positive review, we compensated them with a $50 gift-card for their time, and these posts were in their own voice.
A lot of the studies you mention were done using pure fructose, not high fructose corn syrup. There have been studies done comparing high fructose corn syrup to sucrose – you can see them at http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/88/6/1738S?ijkey=NVivwr2sdGumA&keytype=ref&siteid=ajcn (note: Dr. James Rippe, one of the authors of this study is an independent expert that we have consulted for his expertise), http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/88/6/1715S?ijkey=nTQQkJ3uBgJdg&keytype=ref&siteid=ajcn, and http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/88/6/1738S?ijkey=NVivwr2sdGumA&keytype=ref&siteid=ajcn
Scientific studies continue to find that HFCS does not contribute to obesity any differently than sugar.
Therese, CRA - Continued in the next comment.
Therese
5:03 pm on Monday, October 18, 2010
Continued from above:
Many factors contribute to the development of obesity, yet nutritionists, health experts and researchers generally agree that the chief cause is an imbalance between calories consumed and calories burned. Excessive calories can be consumed as fats, proteins, alcohol or carbohydrates. The American Dietetic Association notes, “Excess body fat [obesity] arises from the energy imbalance caused by taking in too much energy and expending too little energy. ... Obesity is a complex problem and its cause cannot be simply attributed to any one component of the food supply such as sweeteners.” (American Dietetic Association. 2004. Use of nutritive and nonnutritive sweeteners. J Am Diet Assoc 104:255-275. http://www.eatright.org/ada/files/Nutritivenp.pdf)
Therese, CRA
Continued in next comment.
Therese
5:03 pm on Monday, October 18, 2010
Lastly, the prevalence of obesity is increasing around the world, according to the International Obesity Task Force—even though use of HFCS outside of the United States is limited or nonexistent. In fact, sugar accounts for about 92 percent of caloric sweeteners consumed worldwide. (International Obesity Task Force. October 2009. Global Prevalence of Adult Obesity. http://www.iotf.org/database/documents/GlobalPrevalenceofAdultObesityOctober2009v2.pdf See also World Health Organization. September 2006. Obesity and overweight: Fact sheet No 311. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs311/en/index.html. and LMC International, Inc. 2008. Table 2: World Sugar & HFCS Consumption. Sweetener Analysis January 2008.)
Readers can find my response to the genetically modified corn concern at http://blogcritics.org/tastes/article/mommy-bloggers-vs-high-fructose-corn in the comments section.
Our goal is for an open dialogue, and we would be happy to talk about any concerns you may have.
Therese Pompa, Social Media Manager, Corn Refiners Association.
HilLesha Anderson
4:03 pm on Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Corn Refiners Association wasn't the one that emailed me to be part of these campaign. Mom Central sends out these type of campaigns to all of the bloggers that are part of their panel. As always, a select number of people can participate in their campaign, whether their blog is popular or not. I'm not always accepted in their campaigns. :)
Love & Peace, Hil'Lesha
Amy JOhansen
11:09 am on Friday, March 11, 2011
And Therese, of course you are OBLIGATED to say that as a member of the Corn Refiners Association... lol
Therese
3:35 pm on Monday, March 14, 2011
@Amy I was not obligated to take this job, and all integrity is not lost. In addition, I have been fortunate to have access to registered dietitians, doctors, researchers etc. since I have been here, and the research that shows that HFCS and sugar are metabolized the same is solid. If you have specific concerns, then I would be happy to address those.
I welcome a dialogue!
Therese, Corn Refiners Association
Amy JOhansen
11:10 am on Friday, March 11, 2011
PS: Therese, you didn't address the GMO issue either. lol