Mrs. Butterworth’s - not a syrup you want on your morning pancakes
Written by Ajay Chohan, Founder
Mrs. Butterworth’s Original Syrup - KraftHeinz
The Concern with Mrs. Butterworth’s: On its website Mrs. Butterworth’s syrup touts being “deliciously thick and rich” - without clarifying it’s actually thick and rich in additives, artificial flavors and harmful chemicals tied to obesity, cancer and skin irritations
Harmful Ingredients in Mrs. Butterworth’s Syrup to Avoid: High Fructose Corn Syrup, Caramel Color, Sodium Hexametaphosphate, Artificial Flavors
Mrs. Butterworth’s fake maple syrup is “rich” in High Fructose Corn Syrup, which is constantly linked with obesity & other health issues.
I am pretty sure Mrs. Butterworth did not make this concoction in her kitchen after a stroll through her maple tree farm. There is nothing real or wholesome about this junk syrup. High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is the first & primary ingredient/additive in this syrup (second additive being regular Corn Syrup). HFCS is made by separating glucose and fructose in corn, leaving behind highly concentrated fructose. Fructose is not easily digestible by our bodies and humans did not evolve to consume this. HFCS has thus been constantly linked with heart disease, weight gain & obesity amongst other health problems (1).
Mrs. Butterworth’s syrup is also full of toxic ingredients like artificial caramel coloring, 4-Mel and more linked with cancer and extreme skin irritations.
When I say toxic ingredients I do mean it. Butterworth’s gets its color form caramel color, another harmful additive. This synthetic color is made by reacting corn syrup with ammonia & sulfites under high pressure. Generally speaking, when you see foods processed using high heat and high pressure techniques, it is not good news. The caramel color in Mrs. Butterworth’s Original syrup was shown to contain 21 micrograms of 4-Mel per ¼ cup of serving, according to a study by Consumer Reports (2). 4-Mel is a potential human carcinogen shown to cause cancerous tumors in mice.
The levels are not negligible either. For contrast, authentic maple syrup brands covered in the study like Maple Grove Farms’ syrup only contained 0.7 micrograms of 4-Mel per ¼ cup of serving (2). While the amount of 4-Mel in Mrs. Butterworth’s meets FDA’s “generally safe” standards, it is best to avoid foods containing 4-Mel altogether.
The risk here is 4-Mel accumulation over years and decades. If your daily diet contains other processed foods like soda or soy sauce, which have caramel color and consequently 4-Mel, it becomes a concern. As this ConsumerReports.org article states while summarizing its study results on 4-Mel, “Pancake syrup is far less expensive than pure maple syrup, but those savings come at a price. Caramel color is often used to give the syrups their amber hue, and some types can contain 4-MeI—a potential carcinogen. This chemical has been shown to cause cancer in mice, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organization, says that it may cause cancer in people as well.” Even outside of the 4-Mel concern, you don’t want to be eating foods made using high pressure and heat heat techniques, like the synthetic caramel coloring is made.
The additive Sodium Hexametaphosphate in Mrs. Butterworth’s has links with kidney issues and loss of bone calcium.
Sodium Hexametaphosphate is yet another additive in Mrs. Butterworth’s to avoid. Sodium Hexametaphosphate is a synthetic compound used as a thickener in foods, and linked with “swollen kidneys, loss of bone calcium, extreme skin irritations and other precursors to cancer” in tests on lab animals (3). For some context on the nature of this chemical, Sodium Hexametaphosphate also has industrial uses as an adhesive and a “floatation agent” (4). Yup, not something you want on your morning pancakes! Let’s remind ourselves that genuine maple syrup only has one ingredient…maple syrup.
Mrs. Butterworth’s is not real maple syrup.
Which actually becomes a much lesser concern when we look at the toxic ingredients. The company needs to clarify what exactly their syrup is “rich” in since it contains 0% actual maple syrup. The next time we ask ourself if our favorite pancake syrup is gluten free, vegan or how many calories it has — let’s first dive deeper into the ingredients to ensure they are not toxic. Time to ditch this blend of synthetic chemicals & artificial flavors from our breakfast and find real maple syrup instead.
Is (or was) Mrs. Butterworth’s pancake syrup part of your breakfast routine? Please share your thoughts below.
Sources - Research for Yourself!
1. https://healthyeating.sfgate.com/healthier-real-maple-syrup-fake-10612.html
2. https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2014/03/caramel-coloring-in-pancake-syrup/index.htm
3. https://www.isitbadforyou.com/questions/is-sodium-hexametaphosphate-bad-for-you
4. https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/sodium-hexametaphosphate-market.asp
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