Under its StarLeaf stevia expansion programme, PureCircle planned to plant nearly 16,000t in 2018, an increase of about 200% over the year before. The expansion was partly down to new farming partnerships in North Carolina, it said.
PureCircle estimated that 80% of the stevia plants it used this year would be StarLeaf, increasing to 90% next year.
Mintel claimed there were 3,500 products launched with stevia in 2017, up 10% on 2016.
Please click here to sign-up for our free monthly Food Ingredients, Health & Nutrition (FIHN) newsletter.