Crossword Genius

A box with insipid artificial sweetener (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

aspartame

'artificial sweetener' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'a box with insipid' is the wordplay.
'box' becomes 'spar' (sparring is a kind of boxing).
'with' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'insipid' becomes 'tame'.
'a'+'spar'+'tame'='ASPARTAME'

(Other definitions for aspartame that I've seen before include "Strong artificial sweetener -- same apart (anag)" , "What sweetens" , "Sugar substitute" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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