Ask Sara, the Equal Food Scientist

Q: What goes into Equal and how is it made?

A: Equal contains a low calorie sweetener called aspartame. Aspartame is a dipeptide made up of 2 amino acids called L-aspartic acid and the methyl ester of L-phenylalanine. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, just like what you would find in milk, meat and fish. Since aspartame is very potent in sweetness, we deliver it in a more consumer-friendly form by adding other commonly used food ingredients. 1 packet of Equal has the same sweetness of 2 teaspoon of sugar.