Is Stevia A Natural Sweetener?

FoodNavigator-USA.com did a special edition "Where next for natural sweeteners?" Special editions are collections of previously published articles on topics of interest to this newsletter's food industry readers.

Why do this? The holy grail of food technology is to find a no-calorie sweetener that tastes as good as sugar, has no bitter aftertaste, and can be marketed as "natural" because it's extracted from plants.

Examples: Stevia extracted from leaves and monk fruit sweetener.

As with high-fructose corn syrup, not everyone considers these sweeteners to be natural since they have to go through chemical processing steps.

Stevia is extracted from leaves with ethanol. Whether this process can be considered natural is currently under debate in Europe. Some European regulators prefer "extracted from a plant source."
Here are some of the articles. For the complete collection, click here.

Monk Fruit Sweetener Firm: "We Hear Daily That People Are Looking for Alternatives to Stevia"
It might not have garnered as much publicity as stevia, but monk fruit (luo han guo) "has found a niche within the all-natural market but will hit mass market sooner than stevia in this space," according to one leading supplier... Read.

Tate & Lyle: Monk Fruit Sweetener Attracting Most Interest in Dairy and Beverages
Dairy and beverages are proving the most popular application areas for monk fruit sweetener Purefruit, says Tate & Lyle... Read.

Different Processes, Lower Cost, Better Taste: Is Stevia Still on Track for Mainstream Success?
Taste issues and high cost repeatedly have been raised as possible obstacles to widespread acceptance of stevia-derived sweeteners, but one of the many new suppliers entering the market claims that these are no longer the hurdles they once were... Read.

Steviol Glycosides Are Not 'All-Natural," Says New Class Action Lawsuit
A class-action lawsuit filed in California this week argues that steviol glycosides should not be considered natural, owing to the "chemical processing" sometimes used to extract them from the stevia leaf... Read.

Stevia Buyers Beware: There Are Some 'Awful' Extracts Out There...
While traders "jumping in and out of the stevia marketplace" are disrupting prices and standards by peddling some "awful" extracts, high-quality stevia suppliers in it for the long haul will ultimately prosper, according to one leading player...Read.

Stevia in Snacks and Baked Goods — Stealth, Competition, and Potential
While stevia is beginning to take off in a number of baked goods and snack categories in the U.S., Asian, and South American markets, some other emerging "natural" sweeteners look ready to take it on in the segment, claims Datamonitor... Read.

Naturally-Positioned Sweeteners to Lead Market Growth: Report
The U.S. alternative sweeteners market will grow by 3.3 percent a year to reach about $1.4 billion in 2015 — and naturally positioned sweeteners like stevia and agave nectar will lead the way, claims a new report from market research organization Freedonia... Read.
 

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