NutraSweet

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the NutraSweet Company

Type	Private (subsidiary of J.W. Childs Associates)
Predecessor(s)	G.D. Searle
Founded	1985, as a division of Monsanto Company
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois, USA
Key people	Craig R. Petray, Chief Executive Officer
Products	aspartame
Website	www.nutrasweet.com

The NutraSweet Company makes and sells NutraSweet, their trademarked brand name for the artificial sweetener aspartame, and Neotame. Aspartame was accidentally discovered in 1965 by James M. Schlatter, a chemist with a master's degree working under Dr. Kurt Rorig, PhD, in charge of new drug research for G.D. Searle & Company. Dr. Kurt Rorig assigned Mr. Schlatter to put together a polypeptide to be used for a new medication for hypertension. Mr. Schlatter had just put the first two amino acids together and accidentally touched his contaminated finger to his mouth when, much to his surprise, he tasted a sweetness orders of magnitude greater than sugar. Regulatory approval by the FDA became the next hurdle. Searle hired Donald Rumsfeld, congressional representative to Searle's district, to become the company president.^{[citation needed]} The goal was to sell the whole company now that it had discovered NutraSweet. Despite Donald Rumfsfeld's best efforts he was unable to do so on his own. Having met Alan Greenspan, while in Washington, Rumsfeld hired on Greenspan to broker some kind of deal.^{[citation needed][dubious – discuss]} Dr. Rorig was dispatched to testify before the FDA. Greenspan sold aspartame to Monsanto in a year, and moved on.^{[citation needed][dubious – discuss]} Aspartame finally gained regulatory approvals, after applying for fifteen years, permitting its sale in more than 100 countries.^{[citation needed]} The aspartame patent, issued to Schlatter, under contract to turn over all patent rights to the company, good for 17 years, was impeded by the FDA.^{[citation needed]} Monsanto was then able to buy aspartame off-patent.^{[citation needed]} Eventually Pfizer bought Searle.^{[citation needed]} Reference: Kurt J Rorig, PhD. See also "Alan Greenspan Age of Turbulence"

Despite losing market share in recent years to sucralose,^[1][2] the NutraSweet Company states that its product is used in more than 5,000 products and consumed by some 250 million people worldwide.^[3]

Robert B. Shapiro was Chairman and CEO of the NutraSweet Company from 1982 to 1990. Monsanto bought Searle in 1985. In March 2000, Monsanto, which was then a subsidiary of the Pharmacia corporation, sold NutraSweet to the private equity firm J.W. Childs.^[4]

See also

• Aspartame
• Aspartame controversy
• Excitotoxicity
• Merisant, a different company that also makes sugar substitutes (including Equal, another aspartame-based product)
• Sugar substitute
• Sweet'n Low

References

1. ^ John Schmeltzer (2 December 2004). "Equal fights to get even as Splenda looks sweet"] (subscription required). Chicago Tribune. http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0412020391dec02,1,2234783.story?coll=chi-business-hed. Retrieved 2007-07-04. 
2. ^ Carney, By Beth (2005-01-19). "It's Not All Sweetness for Splenda". BusinessWeek: Daily Briefing. http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/jan2005/nf20050119_5391_db014.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-05. 
3. ^ NutraSweet.com
4. ^ the NutraSweet Company. "NutraSweet Company: Company Profile". http://www.nutrasweet.com/company.asp. Retrieved 2009-05-18. 

External links

• NutraSweet official Web site