Notes

[alt text]

Photograph of a cough syrup bottle placed in front of an ear of corn, illustrating a pharmaceutical ingredient derived from agricultural sources.

[transcription]

A superior humectant – derived from corn. Lonza Sorbitol U.S.P. solution is a natural humectant that improves many types of pharmaceutical products… from cough syrups to antacids to liquid vitamins. It provides a coolingly sweet taste without any unpleasant aftertaste. Lonza Sorbitol can effectively be used as a moisture balancer, softener and plasticizer in a variety of applications. It gives up water more slowly at low humidities than glycerine or other polyhydric alcohols… picks up moisture at a slower rate in high humidities. It prevents crystallization and resulting cap lock.

(Bottle label:)
Improved flavor!
COUGH SYRUP

New Jersey 07410

[additional notes] - Violet Webber

I’ve found multiple ads for sorbitol but this is the first one from the company Lonza. In 1982, 6 companies were U.S. producers of liquid sorbitol: Hoffman-LaRoche and Co.; ICI Americas, Inc. (“ICI Americas”); Pfizer, Inc. (“Pfizer”); Lonza, Inc. (“Lonza”); Merck & Co., Inc.; and Ethichem Corp. (“Ethichem”). 

Lonza, started as a hydroelectric plant, grew into a globally operating chemical company. In 1969, they expanded from Switzerland to the United States. They established the Chemical Specialties Business Unit in Fair Lawn, NJ before purchaing a sorbitol plant in Mapleton, IL. 

• https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-ITC1-PURL-gpo24717/pdf/GOVPUB-ITC1-PURL-gpo24717.pdf

• https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/675b/8131a9a715f43b42c8a392f24f399d9e3fa7.pdf#:~:text=at%20Lonza.%20Spurred%20by%20the%20rapid%20growth,to%20harness%20the%20syn%2D%20ergies%20between%20chemistry