The not-so-sweet story of 'Big Sugar'

The average American consumes more than a hundred pounds of sugar in a year, according to the U.S.D.A. The long-term impacts of eating too much of the sweet white stuff are well documented, from contributing to risks for diabetes, heart disease, and fatty liver disease.

But sugar remains a vaulted commodity in American agriculture, receiving billions of dollars in subsidies from the federal government. And for decades, tens of thousands of immigrant workers have endured extremely harsh working conditions in central Florida’s sugar cane fields so that we can feel the rush.

America’s relationship with sugar and the influence sugar companies have on our politics, healthcare, and environment are the subjects of the new 9-episode podcast series “Big Sugar” from iHeartMedia, Imagine Audio and Weekday Fun Productions

We speak with host Celeste Headlee and Executive Producer Marie Brenner. Her investigation for Vanity Fair more than two decades ago is the underlying material for the podcast.

We reached out to the Sugar Association and the American Sugar Alliance for a written statement. The Alliance provided the following written statement below.