New high intensity sweeteners from stevia leaf poised to give rivals a run for their money

Aspartame and sucralose could face some serious competition by the end of the decade if a more 'natural' rival gains approval for use in food in the US and Europe, according to PureCircle, makers of Rebaudioside-A (Reb-A), a sweetener derived from the stevia leaf.

Reb-A is authorised for sale in Japan, Brazil and China, but still needs approval under the Novel Food Regulation to get into the EU market. And it will need to gain GRAS (generally recognised as safe) status for use in the US.

However, the potential for a 'natural' zero calorie high intensity sweetener without any of the negative press associated with sucralose or aspartame was huge, claimed PureCircle.

The firm, which is looking to raise $50M through a stock market flotation, recently struck a deal with Cargill to supply it with some Reb-A, although sources close to Cargill say it is only one of several suppliers.

Reb-A, which is extracted from the stevia leaf using a patent-protected process, is 200 times sweeter than sugar. It is temperature and pH stable, can survive pasteurisation, and is suitable for diabetics, said Peter Milsted, PureCircle sales and marketing director. PureCircle had access to facilities in China to guarantee cultivation of stevia plants, said Milsted. It also owns a refinery in Malaysia, which is being upgraded to produce more than 1,000t of high purity Reb-A a year, he added.

The market potential of the sweetener was underlined recently when Cargill struck a deal with Coca-Cola to develop and sell a branded version of Reb-A called Rebiana.

Cargill is developing its own stevia plant breeding and production system in order to develop commercial quantities of a standardised extract.