
Trump says Coca-Cola has agreed to use real cane sugar in US
"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. I'd like to thank all of those in authority at Coca-Cola," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
A spokesperson for Coca-Cola said the Atlanta-based company will share details on new offerings soon, and that it appreciates Trump's enthusiasm for its product.
Coca-Cola produced for the US market is typically sweetened with corn syrup, while the company uses cane sugar in some other countries.
The Trump administration's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiative, named for the social movement aligned with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has pushed food companies to alter their formulations to remove ingredients like artificial dyes.
Kennedy has also been critical of the amount of sugar consumed in the American diet and has said that updated dietary guidelines released this summer will advise Americans to eat "whole food."
A May report by the MAHA Commission, a panel convened by Trump and tasked with identifying the root causes of chronic disease, said substantial consumption of high-fructose corn syrup could play a role in childhood obesity and other conditions.
Medical experts recommend limiting added sugar in diets, but have not identified significant differences between cane sugar and high-fructose corn syrup.
Corn producers concentrated in the US Midwest have long wielded considerable influence over lawmakers in Washington. The president's home state of Florida is the nation's top sugarcane producer.
"Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar doesn't make sense," said Corn Refiners Association President and CEO John Bode.
"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.'
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The MAHA Commission includes Kennedy, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and several other cabinet members and officials.
The Trump administration has approved some states' requests to exclude soda from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), adding pressure to companies like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo.
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Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Scores more killed by bombs and starvation in Gaza as Trump vows food aid
Donald Trump acknowledged 'real starvation' in Gaza as local health officials confirmed at least 14 more Palestinians, including two children, had died from hunger and malnutrition in the besieged territory. The US president, speaking in Scotland on Monday, vowed the US would set up food centres 'with no fences' to feed the starving Palestinians. He dismissed Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claim that there was no starvation in Gaza. Mr Trump added that the US and other nations were already sending aid but urged Netanyahu to ensure it reached those in need. 'I want him to make sure they get the food,' he said. He also called for an end to the war: 'You have to end it.' The latest deaths brought the toll from malnutrition and starvation in Gaza to 147, including 88 children, the Gaza health ministry said. Israeli human rights group B'Tselem labelled the war on Gaza, which has killed over 59,000 people so far, as 'genocide'. Under mounting pressure over the spiralling hunger crisis in Gaza, Israel said over the weekend that the military would pause operations in Gaza City, Deir al-Balah and Muwasi for 10 hours a day and designate secure routes for aid delivery. International airdrops of aid have also resumed. Aid agencies say the new measures are not enough to counter worsening starvation in the territory. Martin Penner, a spokesperson for the U.N. food agency, told The Associated Press that all 55 of its aid trucks that entered on Sunday were unloaded by crowds before reaching their destination. Another U.N. official said nothing on the ground has changed and no alternative routes were allowed. ADVERTISEMENT Israel said it would continue military operations alongside the new humanitarian measures. A baby girl died hours after being delivered in a complex emergency cesarean. She had been placed in an incubator and was breathing with assistance from a ventilator, AP footage showed. Her mother, Soad al-Shaer, who had been seven months pregnant with her, was among 12 Palestinians killed in an Israeli airstrike on a house and neighboring tents in the Muwasi area of Khan Younis, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies. Another strike hit a two-story house in Khan Younis, killing at least 11 people, more than half of them women and children, according to the hospital. At least five others were killed in strikes elsewhere in Gaza, according to other hospitals. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on most of the strikes. It said it was not aware of one strike in Gaza City during the pause that health officials said killed one person. Israel says it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas because the militants operate in densely populated areas. The daily airstrikes across the territory frequently kill women and children. Images of emaciated children have sparked outrage around the world, including from Israel's close allies. U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday called the images of emaciated and malnourished children in Gaza 'terrible.' Israel has restricted aid to varying degrees throughout the war. In March, it cut off the entry of all goods, including fuel, food and medicine, to pressure Hamas to free hostages. Israel partially lifted those restrictions in May but also pushed ahead on a new U.S.-backed aid delivery system that has been wracked by chaos and violence. Traditional aid providers have encountered a breakdown in law and order surrounding their deliveries. COGAT, the Israeli military body in charge of coordinating aid shipments, said U.N. agencies collected 120 trucks for distribution on Sunday and that another 180 trucks had been allowed into Gaza. The United Nations and aid groups say the territory needs 500-600 trucks a day to meet its needs. Israel's blockade and military operations have destroyed nearly all food production in the territory of roughly 2 million Palestinians. Also on Monday, two air force planes from Jordan and the United Arab Emirates airdropped 17 tons of humanitarian aid in Gaza — an amount that would fill less than a single aid truck. Aid groups say airdrops are often ineffective and dangerous, with falling parcels landing on people or in combat zones or other dangerous areas. 'At the moment, 2 million people are trapped in a tiny piece of land, which makes up just 12% of the whole strip — if anything lands in this area, people will inevitably be injured,' said Jean Guy Vataux, emergency coordinator in Gaza for Doctors Without Borders. 'If the airdrops land in areas where Israel has issued displacement orders, people will be forced to enter militarized zones — once again risking their lives for food,' he added. The head of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, Philippe Lazzarini, warned that airdrops are 'expensive, inefficient and can even kill starving civilians,' and would not address the crisis. At least 25 people were killed by Israeli forces while seeking aid from a truck convoy passing through the southern Gaza Strip, according to health officials and witnesses. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military. Four children were among those killed, according to records at Nasser Hospital, which received the bodies. The shooting occurred in a military corridor Israel has carved out between the southern cities of Khan Younis and Rafah. It was not immediately clear who had supplied the convoy. Survivors at the hospital said Israeli forces had fired toward the crowds. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid since May, according to the U.N. human rights office, witnesses and local health officials. The Israeli military has said it only fires warning shots at people who approach its forces. The Awda hospital in central Gaza said it received the bodies of seven Palestinians who it said were killed by Israeli fire close to an aid distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israeli-backed American contractor. The hospital said 20 others were wounded close to the site. GHF did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Fares Awad, head of the Gaza Health Ministry's emergency service, said at least five Palestinians were killed and about 30 others were wounded by Israeli gunfire while waiting for aid trucks from the Zikim Crossing near Gaza City. Hamas started the war with its Oct. 7, 2023, attack, in which Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people and abducted 251 others. They still hold 50, and Israel believes that more than half the remaining hostages are dead. Most of the rest were released in ceasefires or other deals. Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed more than 59,800 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. Its count doesn't distinguish between militants and civilians. The ministry operates under the Hamas government. The U.N. and other international organizations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties.


Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
The Big Tech Show: Trump says pharmaceutical deal coming in 'near future'
JJ Clarke, producer, joins Adrian on this week's episode of The Big Tech Show. EU exports will be hit with a 15% tariff while US imports to the EU carry a zero tariff. It is seen as a complete capitulation from the European side and a win for both the US and Trump on the American side. This means that thousands of European companies and millions of workers within the EU are being put under considerable pressure and disadvantage when compared to their US rivals. You can listen to the full episode here on the Irish Independent website or wherever you get your podcasts.


Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
Trump's tariffs: What the world got wrong about US president's trade policy
At the beginning of the year, the world was in striking agreement on one point: if US president Donald Trump proceeded with tariffs, it would strengthen the dollar and trigger stagflation. Chief executives, investors and commentators all said the same. Economists estimated that every percentage point increase in the tariff rate would shave 0.1 per cent off US growth and add 0.1 per cent to inflation. But so far, the consequences have been far less disruptive than just about anyone expected. Some analysts still think that's because Trump's threats have been mostly posturing. But the effective US tariff rate has already risen from 2.5 per cent to 15 per cent. Tariff revenue is rolling in at an annual rate above $300 billion (€249 billion), roughly four times the pace this time last year. Many economists had assumed that, by lowering imports, tariffs would strengthen the dollar almost automatically, as an accounting identity. Instead, it suffered its worst fall over the first half of a year since the early 1970s. READ MORE [ EU-US tariffs deal at 15% preferable to 'ruinous' trade war, says Taoiseach Opens in new window ] This unexpected turn is now attributed to the fact that the dollar started the year historically overvalued. Many foreigners were heavily exposed to dollar assets. Of late, they have been hedging those risks and investing more outside the US. Many countries are increasingly attractive places to park money, in part because tariff threats inspired them to push economic reform and cut trade deals with non-US partners. The bigger mystery is why the stagflationary impact of tariffs has yet to materialise in the aggregate data. Is the US really enjoying a free lunch, taking in $300 billion a year in tariff revenues with none of the expected heartburn? By some estimates, foreign exporters are indeed absorbing 20 per cent of the costs – a much larger share than they did in response to tariffs in Trump's first term. The remaining 80 per cent, however, is still getting paid in roughly equal shares by US corporations and consumers. The likely answer is that the negative economic effect of tariffs is being countered by other forces, including the mania for artificial intelligence (AI) and more government stimulus. Since January, estimates of what the big tech companies will spend this year on building out AI infrastructure have risen $60 billion to $350 billion. Smaller businesses are scrambling to catch the wave too, further boosting growth. And all this excitement is neutralising the fear that trade policy uncertainty would dampen animal spirits and freeze new capex. How will the updated National Development Plan shape Ireland in years to come? Listen | 35:59 AI-driven bullishness is also lifting growth by keeping financial conditions loose, even with higher interest rates. According to a new index from the Federal Reserve, those conditions would be neutral, not loose, were it not for the stock market, which has continued rising this year due largely to AI stocks. Meanwhile, the promise of tax relief makes it easier for US corporations to absorb a larger than expected share of the tariff costs, rather than pass it all on to consumers. Trump's 'big, beautiful Bill' is expected to save US businesses about $100 billion this year and more than that in 2026, mainly in tax breaks. That is not to say tariffs have no negative economic effect. The costs are starting to show up in higher prices for big household appliances, sporting goods and toys. Yet the overall inflation rate has been held in check by falling rents and prices for other kinds of goods, including used cars and energy. And those prices are declining for reasons unrelated to tariffs; used-car prices are still retreating from highs created by supply disruptions during the pandemic. So economists were not entirely wrong about the tariffs. And stagflation may yet materialise, particularly if the average effective rate continues to climb. But so far, even a much higher rate has not been enough to overwhelm the larger forces sustaining growth and containing inflation. In a way, what we are seeing is a replay of 2023. That year, too, many expected a big shock (then mainly from Fed rate rises) to dramatically slow US growth, only to find the impact offset by the AI spending boom and the US government's seemingly bottomless capacity to keep doling out fiscal support. What the world got wrong, then and now, starts with its mental frameworks. The timeworn mistake of employing simple models, in which a headline-grabbing input A leads in a straight line to outcome B, has been greatly magnified by the global obsession with Trump. He is the only input anyone cares to analyse any more. But complex economies are rarely shaped by just one factor, not even a shock as big as Trump's tariffs. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025