Donald Trump wants to make Coca-Cola "better" again, but the jury's still out on who really benefits from the change.
"I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using real cane sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so,” the US President wrote on his social media site Truth Social on Wednesday. "I’d like to thank all of those in authority at Coca-Cola. This will be a very good move by them – you’ll see. It’s just better!"
Coca-Cola uses high-fructose corn syrup in Coke sold in the US, but in countries such as Mexico and Australia, as well as in Europe, its drinks are sweetened with cane sugar.
Interestingly, Trump is famously known to favour only Diet Coke, which uses aspartame as a calorie-free beverage. He's such a fan of the drink that he reportedly has a red button installed on the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office that he can press to have a White House butler bring one in for him.
But the presidential pronouncement is in line with the government's Make America Healthy Again initiative, which has been pushing food companies to alter their formulations.
Coca-Cola, meanwhile, has not confirmed the shift.
"We appreciate President Trump's enthusiasm for our iconic Coca-Cola brand," a spokesperson said. "More details on new innovative offerings within our Coca-Cola product range will be shared soon."
Coca-Cola has used cane sugar to sweeten their drinks in the US, but shifted to corn syrup in the 1980s.
Is cane sugar healthier than corn syrup?
While cane sugar and high fructose corn syrup are both sugars, the former is generally considered slightly less harmful of the two. This is because corn syrup has a higher concentration of fructose, excessive consumption of which can lead to obesity and health problems such as diabetes.
In countries such as India, sugarcane has been used to make "healthy sugar" jaggery for more than 3,000 years. Made by boiling down sugarcane until it thickens and solidifies, jaggery is not treated with chemicals and retains many of the plant's natural nutrients.
But Trump's announcement could endanger the livelihood of corn farmers in his own country.
“Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar doesn’t make sense," Corn Refiners Association president and chief executive John Bode said in a statement to AP.
"President Trump stands for American manufacturing jobs, American farmers and reducing the trade deficit. Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar would cost thousands of American food manufacturing jobs, depress farm income and boost imports of foreign sugar, all with no nutritional benefit."
US cane sugar production in the 2025-26 season is expected to account for about 30 per cent of the US sugar supply, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture.
Will the taste of Coca-Cola change?
Trump says cane sugar-sweetened Coke is better, but the difference in taste between a Coke sweetened with cane sugar and with corn syrup is subtle, and is largely down to personal preference.
Cane sugar is known to have a cleaner, bodied taste compared to high fructose corn syrup's lingering sweetness.
Coca-Cola has been importing Mexican Coke to the US since 2005, and it is sold across the country alongside its American-produced drinks.
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MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
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The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 502hp at 7,600rpm
Torque: 637Nm at 5,150rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh317,671
On sale: now
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
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US tops drug cost charts
The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.
Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.
In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.
Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol.
The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.
High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.
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The 12 Syrian entities delisted by UK
Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Defence
General Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Agency
Political Security Directorate
Syrian National Security Bureau
Military Intelligence Directorate
Army Supply Bureau
General Organisation of Radio and TV
Al Watan newspaper
Cham Press TV
Sama TV
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
At Eternity’s Gate
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Oscar Isaacs, Mads Mikkelsen
Three stars
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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Profile box
Founders: Michele Ferrario, Nino Ulsamer and Freddy Lim
Started: established in 2016 and launched in July 2017
Based: Singapore, with offices in the UAE, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand
Sector: FinTech, wealth management
Initial investment: $500,000 in seed round 1 in 2016; $2.2m in seed round 2 in 2017; $5m in series A round in 2018; $12m in series B round in 2019; $16m in series C round in 2020 and $25m in series D round in 2021
Current staff: more than 160 employees
Stage: series D
Investors: EightRoads Ventures, Square Peg Capital, Sequoia Capital India
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
