What Is High Fructose Corn Syrup?

The FDA says the most common forms contain either 42 or 55 percent fructose, called HFCS 42 and HFCS 55, with the rest glucose and water, and that HFCS 42 is mainly used in processed foods, cereals, baked goods and some beverages while HFCS 55 is used primarily in soft drinks. FDA rules at 21 CFR 184.1866 describe it as a sweet, nutritive saccharide mixture prepared from corn starch hydrolysate by partial enzymatic conversion of glucose to fructose, and say it is used in food with no limitation other than current good manufacturing practice, among ingredients the FDA has affirmed as generally recognized as safe.

The FDA says it is not aware of any evidence that there is a difference in safety between foods containing HFCS 42 or HFCS 55 and foods containing similar amounts of other sweeteners with about equal glucose and fructose content, such as sucrose or honey. On labeling, it says federal courts have asked it to decide whether foods containing high fructose corn syrup may be labeled natural, that it has not established a formal definition of natural through rulemaking, and that its longstanding policy treats natural as meaning nothing artificial or synthetic has been added that would not normally be expected in the food.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025 to 2030, say added sugars may appear on ingredient labels under many names, including high-fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, dextrose, cane sugar, honey and molasses, that no amount of added sugars or non-nutritive sweeteners is recommended as part of a healthy diet, and that one meal should contain no more than 10 grams of added sugars.