Food firms' concerns deepen over aspartame controversy

A consumer checks the ingredients labels on 'makgeolli' products at a large discount store in Seoul, July 4. Newsis

By Kim Jae-heun

Amid the recent aspartame controversy, food firms are growing concerned over whether to continue using the possibly carcinogenic artificial sweetener as consumers may be uncomfortable ingesting even a small amount, industry officials said Sunday.

Since the World Health Organization (WHO) classified aspartame in category Group 2B meaning limited evidence suggests it may cause cancer, local companies have taken a cautious stance over the issue.

The two confectionery giants Orion and Crown have decided to find alternative sweeteners.

Orion uses on average 0.01 percent of aspartame in its products, an amount which has little impact on consumers' health.

According to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), a person who weighs 70 kilograms must drink nine to 14 cans of beverages containing 200 milligrams to 300 milligrams of aspartame to exceed the standard of acceptable daily intake of aspartame set by WHO.

“Although we use a very small amount of aspartame in 10 of our snack products, we decided to replace it with other artificial sweeteners considering the public's concern over it. There are many alternatives we can use, but we just need to figure out what will best maintain the quality of our product,” an Orion official said.

Crown said it is also looking for a new artificial sweetener, not because it can affect consumers' health, but because the company wants to relieve consumer anxiety over what they are eating.

Meanwhile, Lotte Chilsung Beverage, which distributes the now controversial Pepsi Zero product, said it will continue to use aspartame in the beverage.

“We have received an official stance from Pepsi Cola's headquarters in the United States that it is using safe amounts of aspartame in the soft drink. We will continue to offer the best quality products to consumers,” a Lotte Chilsung Beverage official said.

Makers of Korean rice wine, makgeolli, need more time to decide whether to continue using aspartame or find new alternatives.

About 85 percent of makgeolli products sold in the domestic market use aspartame. The cost of replacing them all with new artificial sweeteners could come as a considerable burden to producers.

“For now, the MFDS has confirmed the amount of aspartame used in makgeolli is safe to drink, so the companies are relieved. But they are still closely watching the market's reaction,” a Korean Makgeolli Association official said.