NutraSweet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
NutraSweet is the company that makes and sells aspartame, an artificial sugar substitute. NutraSweet® is also the brand name for the sweetener aspartame, which was approved by the FDA for consumption in 1981.
Aspartame is no longer under fire from any major researchers and organizations following the publicly-requested European Food Safety Authority's (EFSA) review of a questionable European Razzamini Foundation (EMF) study. The ERF study and public rumors had declared a causal link between aspartame and a wide variety of conditions, including retinal degeneration, brain tumors, birth defects, behavioral changes, cancer, and heart disease. The EFSA Panel concluded, on the basis of all the evidence currently available from the ERF study, other recent studies, and previous evaluations that there is no reason to revise the previously established ADI for aspartame of 40 mg/kg bw. [1]
Originally, the patent for aspartame was owned by G.D. Searle & Company. In 1985, G.D. Searle & Company was purchased by Monsanto. In this merger, Searle's aspartame business became a separate Monsanto subsidiary, the NutraSweet Company. The U.S. patent on aspartame expired in 1992, and the aspartame market is now hotly contested between the NutraSweet Company and other manufacturers, chiefly the Holland Sweetener Company. In 2000, Monsanto sold its artificial sweetener division (including NutraSweet) to Merisant.
In September of 2004, it was publicized that a RICO lawsuit had been filed in the State of California by an organization calling itself the "National Justice League," against the NutraSweet Corporation, the American Diabetes Association and others for manufacturing and promoting the use of aspartame. The World Natural Health Organization, a high profile critic of many food additives including aspartame, was instrumental in gaining publicity and marshalling public support for this effort. A subsequent investigation by the WNHO, however, found that the National Justice League did not exist as any form of legal entity, and that the attorney claiming to represent the group was not a member of the California bar.
[edit] Other aspartame-containing products by NutraSweet
- Canderel - Sold in Mexico, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia
- Equal - Sold in India
- EqualSweet - Sold in Argentina
[edit] External links
- NutraSweet official Web site
- Safety of Artificial Sweetener Called Into Question by MP, The Guardian, UK, December 15, 2005
- The Straight Dope on aspartame
- The Lowdown on Sweet?—article in New York Times
- The Safety of Aspartame, The New York Times, USA, February 21, 2006
- EU Panel: Aspartame Poses No Cancer Risk, May 6, 2006
- Artificial Sweetener Given the All Clear, New Scientist, May 13, 2006
- Aspartame and Its Effects on Health, British Medical Journal
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| Colours (E100-199) • Preservatives (E200-299) • Antioxidants & Acidity regulators (E300-399) • Thickeners, stabilisers & emulsifiers (E400-499) • pH regulators & anti-caking agents (E500-599) • Flavour enhancers (E600-699) • Miscellaneous (E900-999) • Additional chemicals (E1100-1599) | ||
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| Waxes (E900-909) • Synthetic glazes (E910-919) • Improving agents (E920-929) • Packaging gases (E930-949) • Sweeteners (E950-969) • Foaming agents (E990-999) | ||
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| Aspartame (E951) • Cyclamate (E952) • Isomalt (E953) • Saccharin (E954) • Sucralose (E955) • Thaumatin (E957) • Neohesperidin dihydrochalcone (E959) • Maltitol (E965) • Lactitol (E966) • Xylitol (E967) | ||
