This week, hundreds of confectioners and bakers will descend on Capitol Hill to make their collective voices heard in Washington and call for an end to an archaic and outdated sugar program. The current U.S. sugar policy costs American consumers, small businesses and food manufacturers billions of dollars each year and is directly responsible for the loss of thousands of American jobs. In fact, the Department of Commerce estimates that the sugar subsidy kills three manufacturing jobs for every sugar-growing job it supposedly saves.

Who/What: Members of the Coalition for Sugar Reform – representing bakers and confectioners from across the country – are available to comment on the real costs of U.S. sugar policy on confectionery companies, food and beverage manufacturers, and consumers, including:

Larry Graham, Chairman of the Coalition for Sugar Reform, President of the National Confectioners Association

Mitchell Goetze, President of Goetze’s Candy Company, Chairman of the National Confectioners Association Board of Trustees

Robb Mackie, President and CEO, American Bakers Association

Candy company owners and retail bakers

When: Wednesday, September 21 and Thursday, September 22

About the Coalition for Sugar Reform:

The Coalition for Sugar Reform (www.SugarReform.org) represents consumer, trade, and commerce groups, manufacturing associations, and food and beverage companies that use sugar – including confectioners, bakers, cereal manufacturers, beverage makers and dairy companies – as well as the trade associations for these industries.