The Corn Refiners Association of is petitioning the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to change the name of high fructose corn syrup to “corn sugar” so it sounds more appealing to consumers.

President of the Corn Refiner’s Association, Audrae Erickson said, “Research shows that ‘corn sugar’ better communicates the amount of calories, the level of fructose and the sweetness in this ingredient.”

Over the last two years, the Corn Refiners Association has worked incredibly hard to restore the image of high fructose corn syrup. They’ve even gone as far as a commercial campaign to push the sugary sweetener as a natural ingredient made from corn. The commercials go so far as to “educate” those not sure about what high fructose corn syrup really is, but those of us who stay up to date with health news know the truth.

And knowing that truth is not going to change the way the world looks at high fructose corn syrup no matter what they call it.

Much like sugar, too much high fructose corn syrup can contribute to obesity, which can lead to other dangerous illnesses like type 2 diabetes. While the effects of high fructose corn syrup are really no worse than regular sugar, the amount of high fructose corn syrup that is used in food is alarming.

With more people aiming for a natural food diet, steering away from processed foods containing ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, the Corn Refiners Association will struggle to convince people to continue buying their products. A number of well known companies, including Hunt’s Ketchup, have already stopped using high fructose corn syrup to

The association feels that a name change could be just what it needs to help consumers understand what high fructose corn syrup is. On the other hand, it could take as long as six months before the FDA approves the name change, and if it does get approved another year could go by before it actually appears on food labels.

One has to wonder if changing the name won’t cause even more confusion, rather than help people understand and sympathize with the Corn Refiners Association. Now that we’ve heard science continually badmouth high fructose corn syrup, it’s going to take a lot more than a clever change of name to convince people that the product is safe for them.