Donald Trump got Coca-Cola to change its recipe in the United States

Donald Trump was known to be a big fan of Coca-Cola , to the point of having a red button on his desk designed to have a drink delivered to him whenever he wanted. But he was clearly not satisfied with what was inside. So, between two negotiations on the future of Ukraine , Gaza or his trade war , Donald Trump took the time to announce on the evening of Wednesday, July 16, that he had obtained a change in the recipe for Coca-Cola.

"I've talked to Coca-Cola about using REAL cane sugar in Coke in the United States, and they've agreed," Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social network. The soda will now be made with brown sugar instead of corn syrup. "I'd like to thank everyone at Coca-Cola. This will be a very good decision on their part - you'll see. It's just better!" he said.

The American company also congratulated itself on its website, saying it "appreciated President Trump's enthusiasm for our iconic brand."

While the food giant uses conventional sucrose in Europe, American consumers swallow it through high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). This component became widespread in the United States in the 1970s thanks to government subsidies for corn producers and high tariffs on cane sugar.

But this change could have serious consequences, including for Donald Trump himself. Coca-Cola's decision could affect corn farmers in the Corn Belt, a region of the Midwest that represents a significant pool of Republican voters .

Both HFCS and sucrose, more commonly known as "table sugar," are composed of fructose and glucose. However, their structures differ: HFCS contains free (unbound) fructose and glucose in varying proportions, while in sucrose, these two sugars are chemically bound. Sugars are defined as "free" based on their sweetening power.

These structural differences, however, do not appear to have a significant impact on health. In 2022, clinical studies found no major difference between HFCS and sucrose in terms of weight gain or heart health. The only notable difference: an increase in a marker of inflammation in those consuming HFCS.

Meanwhile, American consumers sometimes have access to Mexican Coca-Cola, which is made with cane sugar and sold at a higher price in some stores because it's considered better tasting. Donald Trump, for his part, is a heavy drinker of Diet Coke, sweetened with aspartame, a compound considered "possibly carcinogenic" by experts at the World Health Organization.