I am a frequent purchaser of little packets of fake sugar, and I have noticed that the manufacturers seem to have agreed upon a color-coding pattern for them:
Saccharin is always in a pink packet, no matter what brand it is. Aspartame comes in blue packets. I fully expect that when cheap brands of sucralose appear, they’ll be in yellow packets (copying the way Splenda is currently sold).
In fact, I recall seeing a tv commercial for Equal (which is the main “name brand” of aspartame, and comes in blue packets) which made fun of “that pink stuff” – an unveiled reference to Sweet N Low (which is the main “name brand” of saccharin, and comes in pink packets).
Two questions: (1) Does anyone know any history of this? When the first knock-off saccharin appeared in pink packets, did the Sweet ‘N’ Low people try to sue for trademark infringment? Did the people at Equal try to trademark their particular shade of blue? I realize that it is probably difficult to trademark a color without any accompanying symbol or design or logo, but I would also argue that the package similarity has confused consumers, who thought they were actually buying the name-brand item.
(2) Attention Canadians and others: What color is cyclamate sold in? What is the most expensive brand? Just wondering…