The Sugar Breakthrough That Finally Cleared Its Biggest Hurdle

The Sugar Breakthrough That Finally Cleared Its Biggest Hurdle

When Ed Rogers last joined Money in the Bank with Franck, Bonumose was still fighting a battle that had little to do with taste, demand or science. The problem was the label. Tagatose, the rare sugar Bonumose produces, had been classified by the FDA as an added sugar because it is technically a monosaccharide. That classification remained in place even though tagatose behaves very differently from conventional sugar and has properties more commonly associated with fiber. Bonumose challenged the decision in federal court and won. But even after the ruling, the company still had to wait for the FDA to act. Now, that barrier has finally been removed. “The FDA still had not followed what the court told them to do,” Rogers said, reflecting on the period after the ruling. “Shortly after we spoke in October 2025, we did get a decision from the FDA that tagatose was going to be exempted and now is exempted from being classified as added sugars on nutrition facts panels.” That decision changed the company’s problem almost overnight. Before, Bonumose had a demand problem. Food companies could see the potential of tagatose, but the added-sugar designation created confusion for consumers and made widespread adoption difficult. Now, according to Rogers, the company has the opposite problem. “We would say, based upon what we’re hearing from our commercial partners, that the demand is around 20 times what our plant capacity is,” he said. In other words, the science is no longer the primary obstacle. Neither is labeling. The bottleneck is production. From regulatory fight to commercial scale Bonumose currently produces tagatose at its facility in Virginia using starch from American-grown crops. The company’s process can use corn, wheat, potatoes and other starch sources, which are then converted into tagatose using proprietary enzymes. Rogers emphasized that there is nothing inherent in the process that prevents large-scale production. The challenge is bringing additional manufacturing partners online. Bonumose is now in active discussions with starch producers and other companies that already understand the unit operations required to convert starch into sweeteners. At very large scale, Rogers believes some infrastructure currently used to produce high-fructose corn syrup could eventually be adapted for tagatose production. That makes the opportunity larger than a single food ingredient. It is also a domestic manufacturing story. Bonumose’s tagatose is made from American-grown crops, and Rogers argues that large-scale rare-sugar production could support farmers, expand demand for non-GMO starch and reduce dependence on foreign supply chains. He even compared the strategic importance of rare sugars to rare earth minerals. “I can make a straight-faced argument that tagatose production, rare sugar production, is as important as rare earth mineral production,” Rogers said. “It is important to American health.” Why tagatose is different Tagatose is not an artificial sweetener and Bonumose did not invent it. As Rogers put it, “God invented tagatose.” The rare sugar occurs naturally in small quantities and was first commercialized decades ago. Bonumose’s innovation was developing a more scalable way to manufacture it. Its appeal comes from a combination of taste, function and potential health benefits. Tagatose has a taste and texture similar to conventional sugar, but Rogers says it has a much lower impact on blood sugar. It also behaves like a prebiotic, passing largely into the large intestine, where it can be fermented by beneficial gut bacteria. According to Rogers, research has associated tagatose with the production of short-chain fatty acids such as butyrate, while also showing potential benefits related to blood sugar response, insulin response and oral health. It is also recognized as non-cariogenic, meaning it does not contribute to tooth decay in the way conventional sugar does. For food manufacturers, however, health benefits are only part of the equation. Ingredients still have to taste good. That is where tagatose may have an advantage over many existing sugar alternatives. Rogers argued that it compares favorably with sugar alcohols such as erythritol, xylitol and maltitol, particularly in taste, functionality and overall consumer experience. The company does not expect tagatose to replace all conventional sugar, nor does it believe every product should rely on tagatose alone. Instead, Rogers sees the future in blends. Tagatose can be combined with conventional sugar to reduce glycemic impact, or paired with highly concentrated sweet proteins to create products with dramatically lower sugar content. In categories such as soft drinks, ice cream and packaged foods, those blends could potentially deliver a more sugar-like experience without requiring manufacturers to compromise as heavily on taste or texture. The next 24 months For years, Bonumose’s biggest goal was clear: resolve the FDA labeling issue. Now the company’s priorities have shifted. Over the next 12 to 24 months, Rogers wants to bring significantly more production capacity online—enough that major food companies no longer have to worry about supply running out. That means expanding manufacturing partnerships while continuing to improve the enzymes at the center of Bonumose’s process. The faster, stronger and less expensive those enzymes become, the more affordable tagatose can become for the mass market. Rogers is not focused on naming a specific chocolate bar, beverage or snack that will adopt tagatose first. He believes those applications will follow once the supply is ready. “I’m not gonna say, ‘Hey, I want to see tagatose in the XYZ chocolate bar or this cookie or this ice cream or this soft drink,’ because that will come,” he said. “It is the large-scale production.” That may be the most important shift in the Bonumose story. The company is no longer simply trying to prove that tagatose deserves a place in the food system. It is trying to build enough of it to meet the demand already forming. Watch the full conversation with Ed Rogers on Money in the Bank with Franck. This is a public episode. 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What Happens When Betting, Gaming, and Markets Become One App?

There are moments when a business idea is not just about one product. It is about a category changing. That is what I kept thinking about during my conversation with Joey Levy, founder and CEO of Betr. Most people may know Betr as a sports gaming company. Some may know it through Jake Paul, Joey’s co-founder. Others may know it from the company’s push into fantasy-style picks, sportsbook, casino, arcade games, and now prediction markets. But the more interesting question is not simply, “What is Betr?” The better question is: What happens when sports, gaming, entertainment, and financial markets start living inside the same consumer app? That is where this conversation gets interesting. The Super App Strategy Betr is trying to build what Joey describes as a real-money gaming super app. That means the company is not just focused on one vertical. It is building an ecosystem across multiple products: picks, sportsbook, casino, arcade, and eventually prediction markets. For Joey, the logic is simple: if someone is interested in sports, they may also be interested in teams, players, casino games, live events, or other ways to engage with outcomes in real time. The key business question is whether those products are separate audiences — or whether they naturally cross-sell into each other. That is where the strategy becomes compelling. A sportsbook customer may also be a blackjack customer. A fantasy-style picks customer may also care about teams. An arcade-style player may also enjoy competitive gaming for real money. A prediction markets user may want to engage with sports, politics, weather, culture, or other real-world events. If you can bring those behaviors together in one wallet, one account, and one user experience, you are no longer just building a betting product. You are building a platform. Why Simplicity Matters One theme that came up again and again was simplicity. Traditional sportsbooks can feel intimidating to casual users. Money lines, point spreads, over/unders, parlays — all of that can make the experience feel more like a spreadsheet than entertainment. Joey’s view is that the casual sports fan has been underserved. That stood out to me because finance has gone through a similar shift. For years, investing platforms were built for people who already understood the language. Then companies came along and simplified the experience for a much broader consumer base. That simplification unlocked new behavior. The same thing may be happening in sports gaming. The company that makes the experience simple, intuitive, and entertaining may have a real advantage — especially if the goal is to reach people who do not think of themselves as traditional sports bettors. Prediction Markets and the Blurring Line One of the most interesting parts of the conversation was Joey’s discussion of prediction markets. Betr has announced a partnership with Polymarket, and Joey also discussed the company’s acquisition of an introducing broker as part of its broader strategy. That raised a bigger question for me: When does a bet become a market? Prediction markets sit in a fascinating space. They are not exactly traditional sports betting. They are not exactly investing. They are not exactly entertainment. They live somewhere in between. And that is why this category is worth paying attention to. If consumers can use one app to engage with sports outcomes, casino-style games, arcade competitions, and real-world event contracts, then the line between gaming and financial behavior becomes less obvious. That does not mean they are the same thing. But it does mean the market is evolving. Distribution Is Changing Too Another major theme was customer acquisition. In finance, companies spend enormous amounts of money trying to build trust and attention. In gaming, the same problem exists, only with even more competition and regulation. Betr’s answer has been to combine product with media. Joey and his team are not only trying to build an app. They are trying to build a brand that people already recognize, follow, and engage with. That is where creator-led distribution becomes important. Jake Paul is not just a celebrity name attached to the company. He represents a different way to think about attention, brand affinity, and customer acquisition. Traditional companies often treat media as marketing. Betr seems to treat media as infrastructure. That is a meaningful distinction. Trust, Regulation, and Responsibility Of course, when you make any real-money product easier to access, responsibility matters. Joey talked about Betr’s approach to responsible gaming, including the decision not to accept credit cards for deposits. That is a notable position in a category where entertainment, risk, and money are all tied together. The challenge for any company in this space is clear: How do you make the product fun without making it reckless? How do you make it accessible without making it dangerous? How do you build a business around excitement while still building trust? Those are not small questions. They are central to the future of the category. Why This Conversation Matters This episode is not just about sports betting. It is about where consumer finance, gaming, media, and entertainment may be heading. It is about how younger consumers interact with risk, attention, and real-time events. It is about whether the next generation will see betting, investing, and gaming as totally separate categories — or as part of a broader spectrum of participation. That is why I found this conversation with Joey so interesting. Betr is operating in a highly competitive, highly regulated, and rapidly changing space. Whether you are an investor, entrepreneur, sports fan, or just someone interested in where consumer behavior is going, this is a company and category worth watching. Listen to the full conversation on Money in the Bank with Franck. — Franck This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit franckcushner.substack.com [https://franckcushner.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Charity vs. Investing Is the Wrong Question

The more interesting question is: what if capital could do both at the same time—without compromising either? That’s the tension at the center of my recent conversation with John Parker, a pediatric-focused investor working at the intersection of philanthropy, venture capital, and measurable outcomes. John operates through the Charles Hood Foundation, an 84-year-old family foundation that supports pediatric research—and, unusually, also runs an internal venture fund. What makes John’s approach compelling isn’t just what he invests in, but how he thinks about capital itself. Investing for outcomes, not just returns John backs companies improving health outcomes for children—from birth through adolescence—across drugs, devices, and digital health. This isn’t charity in the traditional sense, and it’s not venture capital as most people know it either. Instead of asking, “Will this maximize returns?” the primary question becomes: “Will this measurably improve outcomes—and can it still be sustainable?” That framing unlocks a very different risk posture. As John puts it, foundations already know how to lose money—they give it away every year. That creates room to experiment, to invest earlier, and to back ideas that might otherwise struggle to get funded. The surprising part? Many of these investments do work financially—sometimes very well. Pediatric care: overlooked, not small There’s a persistent myth that pediatric healthcare is a “small market.” John challenges that head-on. Children represent roughly 25% of the population. Parents will move mountains to get their kids care. And when you think in terms of lifetime impact, investing earlier produces outsized returns—socially and economically—even if the system hasn’t historically priced that value correctly. That mismatch creates opportunity. John’s portfolio reflects this: early-stage pediatric companies, patient capital, smaller trials, faster regulatory pathways, and technologies that often expand into adult indications later. Recycling philanthropic capital One of the most powerful ideas we discussed is recyclable philanthropy. Using IRS program-related investment (PRI) rules, foundations can deploy charitable dollars into for-profit companies without violating their mission. The intent isn’t to make money—but if capital comes back, it can be redeployed again and again. That turns a one-time grant into a flywheel. Even getting principal back is a win. A home run exit is transformative. Donor-advised funds: capital hiding in plain sight This is where the conversation gets especially interesting. There are hundreds of billions of dollars sitting in donor-advised funds—money that’s already been given a tax deduction, but often sits idle in index funds or money markets for years. What if some of that capital could be put to work now—invested into outcome-driven companies aligned with donors’ values? John has already done this. In his for-profit fund, traditional LPs and donor-advised funds invest side by side. Same vehicle. Same companies. Different motivations. For donors, it’s a way to move beyond writing checks and toward actively shaping impact—while still preserving optionality. The real takeaway This isn’t about choosing between profit and purpose. It’s about expanding the toolkit. Whether you’re an investor, advisor, founder, or someone sitting on a donor-advised fund wondering what to do next, the lines between philanthropy and investing are becoming more porous—and more interesting. And in pediatric care especially, that shift couldn’t matter more. If capital is going to shape the future, we should be deliberate about where it starts. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit franckcushner.substack.com [https://franckcushner.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

The Future of Sports Broadcasting

I met Joel Feld by chance at a dinner in New York City. We were sitting next to each other, two strangers in a loud room, and I noticed the wristbands first — one from a venue, one from a festival. I asked about them, and within minutes we were talking about music, production, and how New York never really leaves you, even when you’ve moved on. He mentioned he was in a band that plays The Cutting Room and casually dropped that he’d once run production for ABC Sports. That’s when it clicked: this wasn’t just another dinner conversation — this was a guy who’d lived through the golden age of sports television and found a way to keep creating for the love of it. So when we sat down for this episode of Money in the Bank with Franck, I wanted to know how someone who started in the truck-filled, cable-dominated world of the 1970s ended up leading broadcast operations for the National Lacrosse League, a fast-growing, digitally native league that runs 126 live games a year across ESPN and TSN. And, just as importantly, how he still finds time to front a rock band on the weekends. The Dual Life of a Sports Executive When we talked, Joel described his career like a musician would describe a band: equal parts creativity, discipline, and negotiation. He’s lived through what he calls “the golden era of broadcast” — when the only way to get a signal out of a stadium was to roll up with a satellite truck the size of a house — to now, where entire productions run through the cloud for a fraction of the cost. “We used to spend hundreds of thousands just to deliver a program,” Joel said. “Now we can do it for about $350. The quality’s better, and we don’t have to fly 200 people to every game.” That shift has opened the door for smaller leagues like lacrosse, pickleball, and women’s soccer to innovate faster than traditional sports ever could. And Joel’s team is using that to their advantage. NIL Money, Education, and the New Business of Athletes But the part of our conversation that surprised me most wasn’t about fiber optics or cloud production — it was about money. Joel was among the first to point out that Name, Image & Likeness (NIL) deals have created a new class of earners: 18-year-olds with six- and seven-figure contracts, few of whom understand taxes, contracts, or compounding interest. “You’ve got kids making millions,” he said, “and when the tax bill comes, they’re shocked. They think, ‘Wait — I spent it all already.’” He sees it as both a challenge and an opportunity: a crash course in financial literacy that could either shape smarter professionals or bankrupt a generation before they ever go pro. For me, it’s another reminder that education around money — how to manage it, invest it, and protect it — needs to start long before the paycheck hits. From Cable to Cloud As we moved into the future of media, Joel described where technology is taking live sports: remote production, distributed teams, and AI-driven graphics that were once too expensive for anything but the Super Bowl. It’s a new ecosystem — one where YouTube, not ESPN, might become the next frontier for leagues like the NLL. “When you’re on YouTube, you have full control,” he said. “You own your audience. You don’t need a network executive telling you what to cut.” That democratization of production and distribution mirrors what’s happened in finance, music, and entrepreneurship. The barrier to entry is gone — but so is the safety net. Why This Matters Whether you’re running a fund, producing a podcast, or managing a team, Joel’s story is a case study in adaptation. He’s lived through the era of three networks and thousand-button remotes, and now leads a sport that’s growing through streaming, data, and accessibility. For me, the takeaway is simple:Technology will always change how we work. Financial discipline determines who survives it. #SportsMedia #NIL #Finance #Streaming #AI #Innovation #Leadership #MoneyInTheBankWithFranck This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit franckcushner.substack.com [https://franckcushner.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

The Sugar That Doesn’t Act Like Sugar

As GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic become more ubiquitous as solutions to everything from obesity to blood sugar issues, it is clear where America is right now: we’re medicating our way out of a nutrition crisis. But what if there were a molecule that could do what those drugs do naturally — lower blood sugar, curb inflammation, even feed the good bacteria in your gut — all while tasting exactly like sugar? That’s what my guest, Ed Rogers, CEO of Bonumose, claims Tagatose can do. “Tagatose isn’t too good to be true — but it’s pretty good” It looks like sugar. It bakes like sugar. But biologically, it acts more like fiber — and its benefits are backed by clinical studies that rival the results of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, without the side effects. So why is the FDA still forcing it to be labeled as “added sugar”? The Sweet Molecule with a PR Problem Tagatose is a rare sugar found in nature — in apples, pineapples, and dairy — that looks, bakes, and tastes like regular sugar. But unlike sugar, it acts like fiber. Clinical studies show Tagatose: * Lowers blood glucose and insulin levels in Type 2 diabetics * Promotes beneficial gut bacteria and boosts butyrate, improving colon and brain health * Protects teeth by reducing Streptococcus mutans, the bacteria behind plaque and cavities * Supports healthy liver function — lowering “bad” cholesterol and inflammation without the metabolic damage linked to fructose It’s even being studied for autism and Type 1 diabetes prevention due to its role in improving gut microbiome and oxidative stress response. So why isn’t Tagatose in every product on your grocery shelf? A Billion-Dollar Labeling Problem Bonumose won a federal court case last year against the FDA, challenging the agency’s decision to classify Tagatose as an “added sugar” — despite it not raising blood glucose or contributing to cavities. That labeling, Rogers says, is the main barrier keeping U.S. food companies from adopting it. “If something shows up on the nutrition label as added sugar,” he told me, “people put it back on the shelf — even if it’s healthier.” Meanwhile, in countries that classify Tagatose as a low-glycemic sweetener, sales are booming. Beyond Sugar Substitutes What makes Tagatose different from sweeteners like erythritol or aspartame isn’t just safety — it’s therapeutic potential. According to Bonumose’s data, Tagatose’s metabolic effects resemble those of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and SGLT inhibitors, but without the side effects. It reduces oxidative stress, promotes gut health, and may even complement pharmaceutical treatments — potentially lowering the required doses for those drugs. “You don’t need to choose between taste and health,” Rogers said. “Tagatose delivers both.” Why This Matters Diet-related diseases — diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease — cost the U.S. more than $1 trillion per year.Replacing even 25% of sugar and high-fructose corn syrup with Tagatose could prevent millions of chronic disease cases and save trillions in healthcare costs. And yet, one line on a nutrition label is keeping it from scaling. What’s Next As the FDA re-evaluates its stance post–court ruling, Bonumose continues to manufacture Tagatose in Charlottesville, Virginia — from American corn and potatoes, not imported ingredients — proving that “healthy” can also mean Made in the USA. If the labeling logjam finally breaks, this story could mark the start of a new American export: a sweetener that’s good for people and for farmers. 📄 Learn more (show notes): What do you think? Would you try a “healthy sugar” if it tasted just like the real thing — or do you trust the FDA label more than the science? #Nutrition #HealthTech #FDA #FoodPolicy #MoneyInTheBankWithFranck This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit franckcushner.substack.com [https://franckcushner.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]