Heartland to appeal NAD sweetener decision

Executive Summary

The maker of xylitol-containing Ideal No Calorie Sweetener says the National Advertising Division's finding against its "More than 99% Natural" claim could deprive consumers of truthful information and "may have dramatic and unintended adverse consequences" for the non-sugar sweetener market. Carmel, Ind.-based Heartland Sweeteners said it will appeal NAD's recommendation to discontinue claims that Ideal is more natural than other no-calorie sweeteners. In a case 1report published Dec. 14, NAD determined that although the synthetic sweetener sucralose makes up less than 1 percent of Ideal's product weight, it accounts for about 80 percent of its sweetness in packet form. Merisant, maker of stevia-based PureVia, brought the challenge to NAD