Mexican Coke Is Ditching Cane Sugar For High-Fructose Corn Syrup (Update: In Mexico)

Well, this is some real bullshit. Mexican Coke is ditching its key ingredient, cane sugar, for high-fructose corn syrup. This is objectively awful.

Mexican Coke—which is also widely available in the United States—has cane sugar to thank for its distinctive taste. By switching to high fructose corn syrup, it will be indistinguishable from boring old American Coke. This is unacceptable.

Executives at Coca-Cola in Latin America decided to make the switch after the Mexican government approved a tax of one peso on every liter of soda sold. To be fair, the tax is in place to help curb obesity in a country where more than 70 percent of people are overweight. But to maintain profits and avoid having to raise the price on a can of soda, Coke execs decided this devastating change was in order.

Why is this such a tragedy? Well, for starters, high-fructose corn syrup is straight up bad for you—in fact, it has been proven to be one of the lynchpins of the obesity epidemic in the U.S. On top of that, its chemical structure differs greatly from cane sugar, so your body processes it differently. High-fructose corn syrup also has ingredients that aren't regulated by the USDA, like mercury and other chemical compounds, which could be very harmful. No word yet on how this could potentially change the supply chain for Coca-Cola, or how it will affect the way its sources its ingredients.

But most importantly? It won't taste the same. Pour out a Mexican Coke for Mexican Coke. [Latin Times h/t @EmilyDreyfuss]

Image credit: Shutterstock/Radu Bercan

Update: Coca-Cola released a statement right around the time this post went up clarifying that this tragic change only applies to Coke distributed in Mexico. Our precious stateside Mexican Coke will continue to be sweetened with 100 percent cane sugar. Crisis averted.