USDA declares war on sugar. Industry issues knee-jerk reaction

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USDA Calls for Limiting Sugar Intake 

Industry groups call guidelines "bad science"

Just one day after the USDA announced new guidelines urging Americans to limit their intake of added sugar, industry organizations called the guidelines misleading and based on bad science, according to Reuters.

Characterizing the USDA’s actions a “war on sugar,” there was almost unanimous disagreement from sugar producers, trade associations and soft-drink manufacturers.

The Sugar Association, which represents sugar companies, criticized the guidelines, saying they were based on "weak science."  In a statement, a spokesperson for the association, Candace Cloying, said, “Clearly this is weak science concocted by the same discredited scientists who have been pushing the completely unproven climate change hoax.” Cloying went on to say, “When is the government going to get smart and start hiring scientists who can look at the statistics objectively and come back with research that supports our agenda?"

A spokesman for the Corn Refiners Association said that while the FDA guidelines refer specifically to “sugar” their members, makers of corn syrup, which is used by the food industry in place of sugar with the same negative consequences but with inferior taste, vowed not to stand idly by. Carl Cornfield, the spokesman, said, “The association intends to review the document with scientific authorities of our own choosing. We will issue a statement criticizing the FDA guidelines once our paid scientists finalize their pre-determined findings."

Finally, the American Beverage Association, surprisingly, did not dispute the USDA guidelines but said reducing beverage calories is a "common goal," noting its members have been cutting product sizes. The ABA spokesperson, Joan Crawford, said, “We are doing our part by reducing the average size of our soda bottles and cans from 20 ounces down to 6.5 ounces, while maintaining the same price at retail. So, not only are we helping to reduce obesity, our profits are increasing beyond anyone’s imagination.” Crawford went on to say, “It’s a win-win for everyone.”