Our Egg Nog Is Made Exactly Like It Was In 1898! With HFCS!

Reader Sarah got a laugh from her egg nog this morning. The package says the ingredients are all natural, just “exactly” like when “Grandfather started our dairy business in 1898.”

Then she looked at the ingredients…

Sarah says:

I found this quite funny this morning when I decided to read the label on the bottle of egg nog my husband purchased last night. The label reads ….”Our splendid Bareman’s American Traditional Recipe Egg Nog is made from all natural ingredients, including eggs and fresh cream. Just exactly like it was made, when Grandfather started our dairy business in 1898.” The funny part is when you flip to the opposite side the second ingredient is high fructose corn syrup! Last time i checked high fructose corn syrup was not a natural ingredient and not used in 1898!

There has actually been some debate about whether or not you can call HFCS “natural” — in fact there was even a lawsuit about the issue. Capri Sun was calling itself “all natural,” and the CSPI found that idea sort of laughable so they sued and Kraft agreed to change the label. In any case, Wikipedia says that HFCS, which requires quite a bit of technology to produce, didn’t start making its way into foods until the 60s — making it unlikely that this egg nog is in fact, “just exactly like it was made” in 1898.

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.