Oobli, the first and only commercial-scale sweet protein technology platform known for its healthy sugar alternatives, announced that it has received a “no questions” letter from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA), confirming that brazzein-54, a sweet-tasting protein naturally occurring in the oubli fruit, is Generally Recognised as Safe (GRAS) for use as a sweetener in food and beverages. brazzein-54 joins brazzein-53 and monellin as the third protein on the Oobli platform to gain FDA GRAS status.

As a nature-identical sweet protein platform, Oobli is dedicated to providing a complete suite of plant-derived sweet proteins. Brazzein-54 further expands Oobli’s platform, offering an additional option for food and beverage partners seeking healthier, sugar-free solutions.

“Oobli is changing the future of sweetness through the use of sweet proteins as a replacement for traditional cane sugar and other alternative sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose, stevia and erythritol,” said Jason Ryder, Oobli Founder & CTO and Adjunct Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at University of California, Berkeley. “The oubli fruit sweet protein is one of several sweet proteins that is derived from fruits primarily found in West Africa and other equatorial environments. Sweet proteins are a class of proteins that deliver a sugar-like sweetness but don’t affect blood sugar, insulin, or the gut microbiome.”

Oobli is the first company to receive a “no questions” letter from the FDA for use of the oubli fruit sweet protein as a food ingredient. The company’s brand name and sweet protein platform, Oobli, was inspired by West African villagers who originally described the fruit as “so sweet it makes children forget their mother’s milk.”

“The ‘no questions’ letter from the FDA is further testament to the strong potential that sweet proteins have to disrupt our global dependence on sugar and alternative sweeteners,” said Ali Wing, CEO of Oobli. “The oubli fruit sweet protein can be safely used in a wide range of foods with support from the scientific community and the FDA. It can replace 70 % or more of sugar in products such as sodas, teas, baked goods, and more, making the opportunities to reduce our sugar consumption virtually endless.”

MycoTechnology, Inc., has announced that its new ClearHT^™ natural flavour has received Generally Recognised As Safe (GRAS) status from the Flavour and Extract Manufacturers Association (FEMA) for use as a flavour with modifying properties (FMP) in multiple food and beverage categories.

Discovered from the honey truffle, a unique species of fungi with a rich history of use, ClearHT^™ natural flavour is the newest addition to MycoTechnology’s portfolio of innovative taste solutions. At low inclusion levels, it enhances flavours such as citrus and caramel, and offers new ways to modulate sweetness, helping to address continued consumer demand for better-tasting, healthier products. It will be available for use in markets that recognize FEMA GRAS determinations by early 2026.

“Achieving FEMA GRAS status affirms the safety of ClearHT^™ natural flavour and opens new opportunities in many regions,” says Sue Potter, Ph.D., Vice President, Global Regulatory Affairs at MycoTechnology. “This is a significant milestone in our efforts to expand the availability of our ingredient solutions to global markets.”

Jordi Ferre, MycoTechnology’s CEO, adds, “We are proud to introduce ClearHT^™ natural flavour, our latest innovation in MycoTechnology’s line of transformative ingredient solutions. Our team has continued to demonstrate exceptional progress in scale-up, safety validation, and applications development in preparation for commercial availability. This approval marks another important step in our mission to promote healthier, better-tasting food and beverages.”