Summary : In May 2025,
Sprite’s global formula change using cheaper high-fructose corn syrup (1/3
sugar cost), sucralose, and acesulfame K drew backlash for a
"cloying" taste.
Drivers:
Cost: Annual savings over ¥200M.
Efficiency: Stable corn supply and liquid
production benefits.
Policy: Subsidies create market split: U.S.
(45% premium), China (38% mid-low), Thailand/Brazil (17% regional).
In May 2025, Sprite sparked consumer
controversy due to its global formula adjustment. The formula change of Sprite
began in 2019, but it was not until May 2025 that it became a hot topic on
social media due to consumers' actual tests and discussions. The new version of
Sprite adds high - fructose corn syrup, sucralose (with a sweetness 600 times
that of sucrose), and acesulfame K (with a sweetness 200 times that of
sucrose), and reduces the amount of white sugar. This has caused the taste to
change from "refreshing" to "cloying", and even a
"plastic - like sugar" aftertaste has appeared.
Core
Motivations for Choosing High - Fructose Corn Syrup
Cost
The cost advantage of high - fructose corn
syrup is the direct driver of the formula adjustment. Data from the first
quarter of 2025 shows that the price of high - fructose corn syrup is only 1/3
of that of white sugar (2150 yuan per ton vs. 5800 yuan per ton), and the price
difference has reached a 10 - year high. Taking Sprite's annual output of 3
billion bottles as an example, replacing the sweetener can save annual costs by
more than 200 million yuan. In addition, the high sweetness of high - fructose
corn syrup (F55 type with a fructose content of 55%) combined with artificial
sweeteners can greatly reduce the amount used, further reducing costs.
Efficiency
High - fructose corn syrup is made from
corn starch, and its supply chain stability is better than that of white sugar
which relies on sugarcane. China's "corn deep processing upgrading"
policy has promoted enterprises like COFCO to expand production (such as the
550,000 - ton starch sugar project in Taicang), and large - scale production
has further reduced costs. Moreover, the liquid nature of high - fructose corn
syrup simplifies the production process and improves filling efficiency,
especially suitable for high - output beverages like Sprite.
Policy
Enterprises' choice of high - fructose corn
syrup as a sweetener is also significantly influenced by policy subsidies. The
main raw material of high - fructose corn syrup is corn starch, and its
production cost is significantly affected by government agricultural subsidies.
The corn starch industry received full - chain policy support in 2025:
The
United States
At the planting end, the Agricultural Bill
provides direct payments for corn planting (such as a subsidy of 150 - 200 yuan
per mu in the northeastern production area in 2025), and includes corn ethanol
production in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The biofuel subsidy scale
reached 3.8 billion US dollars in 2025, indirectly driving the demand for corn
starch.
At the processing end, technical upgrading
subsidies are provided for high - fructose corn syrup production enterprises.
For example, ADM Company received a federal subsidy of 30% of the equipment
purchase cost for transforming the production line with membrane separation
technology, reducing the energy consumption per ton of syrup by 18%.
At the export end, by taking advantage of the
loopholes in the WTO "Green Box Policy", through export credits (such
as the USDA GSM - 102 program) and the Foreign Market Development Fund (FMD),
the export volume of high - fructose corn syrup to China increased by 22% year
- on - year from January to March 2025, with an average price 12% lower than
that in China.
The
European Union
In 2024, the EU approved a direct grant of
230 million euros for Polish corn producers to cope with market fluctuations
caused by the Russia - Ukraine conflict, with individual farms able to receive
a maximum of 280,000 euros.
It also implements green transition
subsidies, linking 40% of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) funds to
environmental protection measures. For example, German enterprises can receive
a 25% subsidy for equipment investment when installing photovoltaic steam
systems for starch production, with a 20% reduction in carbon emission
intensity.
Finally, through the "Private Storage
Aid" (PSA), subsidies are provided for enterprises to store excess starch.
In the first quarter of 2025, the export volume to Egypt increased by 34%,
avoiding the cost of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).
Thailand
In 2025, it launched a subsidy plan of
368.9 million Thai baht, including interest compensation for delayed harvesting
(to alleviate short - term supply surpluses) and subsidies for the purchase of
processing equipment (30% - 50%), making the production cost of cassava starch
15% lower than that in China and seizing the Southeast Asian beverage market.
In export tariffs, it exempts cassava
starch exports from value - added tax (VAT). In the first quarter of 2025, the
export volume to China reached 980,000 tons, with a price 20% lower than that
of Chinese corn starch, forcing Chinese enterprises to turn to the production
of high - value - added high - fructose corn syrup.
Brazil
Through the Pepro auction mechanism, the
government pays the transportation price difference between inland corn and
ports. A subsidy of 500 million reais (approximately 90 million US dollars) was
provided in 2025, making the export price of Brazilian corn starch 18% lower
than that of China and accounting for 35% of the African market share.
It also gives tax incentives. It exempts
export enterprises from the Social Integration Program (PIS) and Social
Security Financing Contributions (Cofins). In the first quarter of 2025, the
export volume of high - fructose corn syrup increased by 29% year - on - year,
mainly flowing to the Middle East.
The
United States forms a cost barrier with full - chain subsidies, the EU sets
technical thresholds with environmental subsidies, and Thailand competes for
market share with substitute subsidies. This subsidy difference has led to a
tripartite pattern in the global high - fructose corn syrup market: the United
States occupies the high - end market (45% share), China dominates the mid - to
- low - end market (38% share), and Thailand and Brazil compete for regional
markets (17% share).
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