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This week Food Dive took an in depth look at sugar consumption and sugar’s role in food and beverage products. Along with other scientists in the field, Dr. Courtney Gaine, Sugar Association President and CEO, commented on both the trends in sugar consumption and the unique functional properties of sugar in foods.

“According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Americans consumed 20.8 teaspoons of added sugars and sweeteners per day in 1970. That amount spiked in 2000 to 26 teaspoons, largely due to soda consumption, Courtney Gaine, president and CEO of the Sugar Association, told Food Dive.”

Today, the average person has about 22.5 teaspoons of added sugars each day.

Click here to read the full Food Dive article including the fact that currently there is no single ingredient that can be substituted for sugar and duplicate all of its functional properties.

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