Few things represent the ubiquity of American culture as well as Coca-Cola. Tin signs with the libation’s signature cursive logo can be found in the farthest corners of the world. Coke sells an estimated 1.6 billion drinks each day, in 200 countries worldwide.To feed the billions of sweet tooths craving their product, Coke has a well-developed distribution system that connects the company’s secret formula with bottlers around the world. The bottling companies receive the formula as a premixed concentrate, later adding their own water and sweetener.But the largely-standardized process has not resulted in a “standard” Coke. The quality of Coke you enjoy will differ wildly, depending on where you are in the world.One might think that the best Coke in the world would be enjoyed on a hot summer day in Atlanta, Ga. – the company’s     birthplace. However, truth is you’d probably get more satisfaction in a dingy Moroccan shack-turned-cafe on the edge of the Sahara desert.The difference is in the sweetener – unlike in the United States, the bottling company providing Coke to Berbers in Morocco uses real cane syrup to sweeten its concentrate. The same is true of most European countries.Bottlers in the U.S., however, have been using high-fructose corn syrup instead of sugar since 1984. There is no question that the change results in a loss of quality. In fact, more discerning (and committed) Americans have been known to pay a premium at ethnic grocery stores for the Mexican variety, which contains cane sugar.HFCS is a cheaper alternative for food manufacturers because of two reasons: corn subsidies and sugar tariffs.   Corn has been subsidized in the United States for years. With bipartisan support to maintain the Midwest constituency, Americans have been paying farmers to grow more corn. Corn subsidies totaled some $56 billion from 1995 through 2006.  This has lowered the price of HFCS and contributed to the use of the controversial fuel called ethanol.Meanwhile, the cheap cane sugar which could be imported from the Caribbean countries is inflated by tariffs meant to bolster domestic sugar production. Besides not tasting as good as cane-syrup Coke, critics say HFCS is actually unhealthy. Corn producers point to research that says sugar is sugar, whether it comes from corn or cane. But some developments are alarming: A study earlier this year found that nearly half of the HFCS they tested contained mercury.Whether or not HFCS is markedly less healthy than cane sugar, one thing is clear: Increased use of any sweeteners is tied to obesity and general bad health. The low cost of HFCS has lowered the prices of some of the worst food around — particularly fast food. In effect, Americans are paying corn producers to help make unhealthy food even cheaper.Cheaper sweet foods mean Americans in worse health. In the midst of a raging health care debate in which one third of Americans are obese and 8 percent have diabetes, looking at food economics is central to the American wellness and nutrition system. The debate shouldn’t only focus on how we fix people once they are sick but also how we get sick people (especially when government policy is the culprit).The U.S. needs to stop subsidizing corn that undermines Americans’ health.Getting rid of subsidies is central to free-market economics. But what then should become of the tariffs on imported sugar, which will raise the price of cheap food? Although fiddling with international trade in this matter invariably leads to wasted resources and higher costs, these results must be weighed against the public costs of cheap sweetener.Maintaining the current taxes on imported sugar while dismantling the current giveaway system to corn farmers would help America’s health and help Louisiana farmers. Besides, we’ll all get to enjoy a real Coke — right here in the U.S.Mark Macmurdo is a 22-year-old economics and history senior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter@TDR_mmacmurdo.–Contact Mark Macmurdo at [email protected]