A groundbreaking stevia composition for cost-effective, premium sweetening
Tate & Lyle PLC, a world leader in ingredient solutions for healthier food and beverages, unveils its new stevia composition, OPTIMIZER STEVIA® 8.10. This innovative ingredient delivers the highly desired premium taste profile closest to sugar, even at high sugar replacement levels, while offering a more cost-effective solution than other premium sweeteners.
This stevia composition offers a comprehensive set of benefits for both manufacturers and consumers. With OPTIMIZER STEVIA® 8.10, manufacturers gain access to a versatile, great tasting stevia at a lower cost-in-use, offering an improved value compared to other premium stevia sweeteners. This translates to delicious, low-calorie options that meet consumer demand without compromising on taste. The unique composition qualifies for labelling as “stevia extract”, (following JECFA* guidance) aligning with consumer preference for a sweetener derived from nature.1**
With versatility across applications, OPTIMIZER STEVIA® 8.10 is ideal for achieving a superior taste profile in high sugar-replacement formulations like nutrition bars and shakes, functional beverages, vitamin gummies, and yoghurt.
Abigail Storms, Senior Vice President Global Platform, Sweeteners & Fibers, Tate & Lyle said: “OPTIMIZER STEVIA® 8.10 is a breakthrough for the industry. We’ve leveraged our technical expertise to create a sweetener that not only meets the highest standards of taste and quality but also delivers cost savings to our customers. OPTIMIZER STEVIA® 8.10 opens a world of possibilities for food and beverage manufacturers because they no longer have to compromise on taste because of cost. Whether you’re looking to improve taste, reduce costs, or enhance the nutritional profile of your products, OPTIMIZER STEVIA® 8.10 delivers on all fronts.”
This development underscores Tate & Lyle’s unwavering commitment to scientific innovation. Through proprietary production processes, the company has unlocked the potential of previously underutilised steviol glycosides, naturally occurring components within the stevia leaf. This innovative process developed by Tate & Lyle’s scientists and engineers enables greater use of the stevia leaf extract, promoting more efficient manufacturing processes.
1Tate & Lyle Proprietary Research, 2024 Global Consumer Ingredient Perception Research – US; Base size n=302
*Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives
**The applicability of label claims and the regulatory and intellectual property status of Tate & Lyle ingredients varies by jurisdiction
The launch of Ocean Spray® Zero Sugar marks the first national brand to introduce a zero-sugar product with no artificial sweeteners in the shelf-stable juice aisle.
Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., the agricultural cooperative owned by roughly 700 farmer families, has announced the launch of Ocean Spray® Zero Sugar Juice Drink, the first beverage from Ocean Spray with bold flavour, 0 g of sugar, and no artificial sweeteners*.
Ocean Spray® Zero Sugar Juice Drink will be available in two flavours, Ocean Spray’s iconic Cranberry flavour and Mixed Berry, a new flavour to the brand’s beverage portfolio. Made with real fruit juice and sweetened with stevia*, Zero Sugar is an excellent source of Vitamin C.
“From full flavour blends to refreshing diet and now bold zero sugar, Ocean Spray is committed to developing product innovations that continually meet the needs and desires of consumers who are seeking out more options for their juice drink,” said Trinh Le, Vice President, Next Generation Beverages and Omni-Channel Marketing at Ocean Spray. “We’re excited to be the first brand to introduce this new innovative product in the shelf stable aisle and continue our legacy of beverage innovation.”
Ocean Spray® Zero Sugar is the latest in the brand’s developments to create more health-conscious options for today’s shoppers. Earlier this year, Ocean Spray launched another “better-for-you” juice line, which includes Immunity Cranberry Blueberry Acai, Immunity Orange Mango, and Ocean Spray® Revitalize Cranberry Pineapple Juice Drink. These function-forward beverages are made with real fruit juice, no artificial sweeteners*, and zero added sugar.
Ocean Spray® Zero Sugar Juice Drinks will be available in the US at grocery stores and Walmart in November 2023
*Contains stevia leaf extract, which has been further processed
vitaminwater® announced the addition of two new flavours – ‘with love’ and ‘forever you’ – to its zero sugar lineup, plus an innovative reformulation for all six zero sugar flavours. The new zero sugar reformulation offers our latest sweetener formula that includes monk fruit and stevia in addition to added vitamins and nutrients. The products are now available in the US at mass retailers, grocery stores and convenience stores.
The new flavours serve as an extension of vitaminwater’s promise to ‘nourish every you.’ Inspired by the notion that multiple sides of “you” have needs, vitaminwater encourages individuals to nourish each and every one. Whether your body, your emotions, or your complexities, vitaminwater has something in its suite of products to celebrate your multifaceted self.
Joining vitaminwater’s zero-sugar rainbow of flavours, ‘with love’ and ‘forever you’ provide new nutrition that can add positivity for each of your “yous”:
- ‘with love’ is delightfully infused with raspberry and dark chocolate for a unique taste. The nutrient-enhanced water beverage features a liquid boost of magnesium (85 mg) to help support heart health and 100 % antioxidant vitamin C alongside vitamin A (25 %) and vitamin E (30 %).
- ‘forever you’ contains tropical coconut lime flavours with white curcumin (18 mg) alongside 100 % antioxidant vitamin C, vitamin A (25 %) and vitamin E (30 %). Both drinks are a great source of vitamin b3, vitamin b5, vitamin b6, and vitamin b12.
Approval opens door for more food and beverage sugar reduction solutions
Sweegen expanded its Signature stevia footprint in Latin America after Colombia approved its stevia sweeteners made by bioconversion, a method producing clean and non-GMO ingredients. Sweegen’s rebaudiosides E and I will now join the already approved D and M.
“Latin America is one of our most important markets globally,” said Luca Giannone, senior vice president of global sales. “The continuous development of our Signature sweeteners and sweetener system demonstrates our commitment to investing in new technologies for helping brands tackle sugar reduction challenges and replace sugar in better-for-you food and beverages in Colombia.”
Triggered by rising levels of obesity, Colombia has undergone a nutrition transition. The country has prioritized the health and well-being of children and families by adopting policies to address the obesity epidemic. Colombia’s Ministry of Health has prioritized sugar reduction by exploring sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) taxes to mandatory front-of-pack warning labels through legislative, and public media pushes. The country joins the growing list of Latin American countries prioritizing health, including Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Peru, and Mexico.
In South America, 52 % of consumers say they are looking to moderate sugar intake in soft drinks, according to FMCG Gurus 2021. Colombia ranks third in the region for new product launches in soft drinks and fourth for sales value in 2018, following Brazil and Argentina, as reported by Innova Market Insights.
“As new product launches have increased in recent years, brands have a clear opportunity to create healthy innovative food and beverages, replacing up to 100 % sugar with Sweegen’s Signature stevia and sweetener system,” said Giannone.
“The regulatory development is good news for Sweegen to introduce more steviol glycosides made by bioconversion. It also gives consumer packaged goods (CPGs) direct access to Sweegen’s Signature sweeteners without waiting for additional product registration in Colombia,” said Hadi Omrani, senior director of technical and regulatory affairs.
New generation rebaudiosides made by bioconversion produce clean sweetener molecules like rebaudiosides B, D, E, I, M, and N, originally found in small quantities in the stevia leaf. They impart a clean sugar-like taste with a better sensory profile and are highly sought-after by food and beverage manufacturers in countries with regulatory approvals.
As Colombia traverses health and wellness improvement, brands now have less pressure to navigate sugar reduction solutions. Sweegen is a resource of expertise for brands to collaborate on new and exciting foods and beverages that resonate with consumers. Sweegen’s LATAM Innovation Studio, located in Mexico City, serves the entire region. It is one of many global creative centers home to product developers exploring sweet taste solutions, local consumer insights, and collaborating on new or reformulated products with Sweegen’s expert food and applications team.
“Brands have the excellent opportunity to adopt a healthy profile and broaden their product offerings to consumers increasingly interested in better-for-you foods and beverages,” said Steven Chen, Sweegen’s chief executive officer. “We’re ready to help brands navigate the future of healthy food and beverages.”
Tate & Lyle PLC, a leading global provider of food and beverage ingredients and solutions, has launched a new sustainability programme to enable stevia growers in China to lower their environmental impact and gain greater economic benefit from production of this in-demand no calorie sweetener. Developed with environmental charity, Earthwatch Europe, and being rolled out with support from Nanjing Agricultural University (NJAU), the outreach programme provides farming families in Dongtai, East China with training to help them to modernise farming practices and achieve sustainability-related accreditation for their stevia.1
As a leading global stevia supplier, in 2019 Tate & Lyle commissioned Earthwatch to undertake a first-of-its-kind study to assess the environmental impacts of different approaches to stevia production in China, where most of the world’s stevia is grown. The study identified a significant opportunity to drive environmental improvements in stevia production and support the Company’s suppliers in Dongtai, one of the first areas in China where stevia was cultivated around 40 years ago and one of the main seedling supply areas in the country. Learnings from this study have been incorporated into the new sustainable stevia programme, with key areas identified by Earthwatch including:
- Lowering the environmental impacts of stevia production by changing usage of synthetic fertiliser and pesticides to more sustainable alternatives, and providing guidance on application timing, targeting and volumes.
- Taking a comprehensive prevention and control approach to protect against pests, crop diseases and weeds, replacing plastic materials used for mulching with more sustainable alternatives.
- Developing farming practices to help maintain soil health, keep carbon locked in and improve on-farm composting.
Stevia experts from nearby NJAU are supporting growers in the programme through training, farm visits and best practice sharing. In a new pilot study, the NJAU team will also apply more sustainable fertiliser to an area of land and monitor its impact to help demonstrate and communicate the benefits of this intervention, the main recommendation for Dongtai farmers in the 2019 study. Stevia growers will also benefit from mentoring throughout the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) certification process.
1Sustainable Agriculture Initiative (SAI) is one of the main global food and drink value chain accreditation initiatives aimed at accelerating the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices. This pilot programme will run until 2022.
Sweegen’s footprint in Europe became stronger after the European Union Commission published its approval of Sweegen’s non-GMO Signature Bestevia Rebaudioside M (Reb M) for use in food and beverages.
The approval of Sweegen’s Signature Bestevia Reb M leads the future of wellness in food and drink in Europe. Brands in Europe now have access to the best-tasting highly sought-after stevia sweetener. The availability broadens the toolkit for sugar alternatives to reimagine food and drink, opening new doors for creating healthy products for consumers.
Consumers are increasingly aware of the need to reduce sugar in their diets for better health. Yet, when they are making decisions for purchasing food and beverages, consumers will ultimately select the brand with the best taste. Therefore, tackling the toughest sugar reduction challenges is a priority for brands as taste is the reason for repeat purchases.
The soft drinks industry in Europe is making a pledge to cut added sugars in Europe. The Union of European Soft Drinks Associations (UNESDA) announced on June 29 this year to reduce average added sugars in its beverages by another 10 % across Europe by 2025.
In its further commitment to Europe, Sweegen has aligned the availability of its Reb M with commercializing the high-purity sweetener at its manufacturing facility in Europe. The facility is open in Europe for helping food and beverage manufacturers with rapid production and low cost-in-use sugar reduction solutions.
To compliment the approval of Reb M, Sweegen invested in designing and building its Innovation Studio in Reading, England, near London. The studio opened its doors in January 2021 with a full applications team to collaborate with food and beverage manufacturers on exploring the entire consumer landscape to understand what trends are driving consumer behaviour, and then provide inspirational ingredients to represent those trend drivers.
Sweegen is the first company to receive the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) panel’s safety status for any steviol glycoside produced by alternative and sustainable technologies. To achieve high purity clean-tasting stevia leaf sweeteners, Sweegen uses a bioconversion process starting with the stevia leaf. This process enabled Sweegen to obtain the Non-GMO Project verification for its Signature Bestevia stevia sweeteners in the U.S. market.
Bestevia Reb M was commercialized in 2017 and has already been approved in many regions around the world.
Concern over sugar intake and interest in sugar reduction is driving an increasingly sophisticated approach to sweetening food and beverages with a focus on three parallel areas: natural sweeteners, less sweetening and no sweetness.
Innova Market Insights’ latest Ingredient Insider report analyzes trends in sugar reduction and the use of sweeteners in food and beverages. The report includes market and consumer research, new product activity and the use of sugar-related claims in food and beverages.
Efforts to reduce sugar levels are well established and ongoing, reflecting the well-documented link to dental caries as well as the widely held view that high sugar consumption is a causative factor for a range of conditions including weight gain, diabetes and hyperactivity in children. Government intervention in this regard has become more widespread globally, including the use of sugar taxes and the regulation of advertising targeting children.
Four in 10 consumers in Innova’s global Health and Nutrition Survey in 2020 claimed to have decreased their sugar consumption over a 12-month period. The prevention of health conditions was the leading reason given for this reduction, ahead of weight management and followed by dental health.
“In recent years ingredient innovations have enabled manufacturers to better replicate the multiple sensory and functional properties of sugar, including sweetness, mouthfeel, bulk, browning and moisture retention, while lowering the amounts of sugar and calories,” reports Lu Ann Williams, Global Insights Director at Innova Market Insights.
Sweeteners currently include non-nutritive, bulk, reduced-calorie sugars and rare sugars, but ongoing research is likely to discover forms of sugar that can be marketed as natural and offer both formulation and metabolic benefits, while increasingly successfully targeting the high taste expectations of consumers.
As well as NPD activity in sweet ingredients, such as fruits to provide sweetness that does not count towards added sugar on labels, the demand for natural sweeteners like stevia, monk fruit and erythritol is rising in response to consumer demand for clean products and a clean label. These are starting to displace other sweeteners considered to be artificial, reflecting Innova Market Insights’ Top Trend for 2021, “Transparency Triumphs.” Companies are upping their game to tell the story of their product by detailing exact ingredients and origins along with production processes.
Manufacturers are continuing to develop new steviol rebaudioside glycosides with sweetness profiles that better match the taste of sugar. At the same time, new production methods are reducing environmental impact. Blends of ingredients used to replicate the sensory and functional properties of sugar include plant-derived sweet-tasting fibers such as chicory root fiber.
These ingredient mixes will continue to optimize taste, recognizing its vital role as a purchase driver. These can encompass concentrated sweeteners alone, or in combination with fibers and other components that replicate the sensory and functional properties of sugar. Ingredients can be chosen and tailored to match the dietary requirements of consumers, including plant based, vegan and gluten free. They are also likely to offer benefits beyond sweetness, such as better-tolerated fibers and protein fortification.
‘No added sugar’ claims are growing in Europe, with the UK leading the charge as it has the highest proportion (15 %) of European food and drink launches carrying this claim in the past five years, followed by Germany (13 %) and France (10 %). In Poland, ‘no added sugar’ claims have doubled since 2016, reaching 9 % of food and drink launches in 2021.
According to Mintel’s latest consumer research, almost three out of five (59 %) French and German consumers are trying to limit their sugar intake, rising to 65 % of respondents in Poland and 67 % in Spain. However, over half of German (54 %) and (53 %) French* consumers simply prefer eating less indulgent products instead of consuming more ‘light/diet’ alternatives. This is especially true for carbonated soft drinks, with Polish (38 %)** and German (37 %)** consumers being the most likely to agree that ‘better-for-you’ carbonated soft drinks do not feel like a treat.
Neha Srivastava, Food and Drink Patent Analyst at Mintel, said:
“The pandemic has amplified the need for indulgence, influencing consumers’ choice of food and drink. At the same time, the pandemic has seen people place a higher priority on their health by, for example, reducing their sugar intake – but they don’t want to compromise on taste.
“Food and drink companies are starting to pay more attention to cutting sugar from their products. Based on the percentage of granted patents currently active in Europe, France and Germany are among the top five leading countries with the majority of patent grants related to sugar reduction, each accounting for 5 % of all global patent grants. Recent patent activity related to sugar reduction varies from improving the taste of sweeteners to innovating new techniques to reduce the production cost of rare sugars.”
Functional fibre and next-gen stevia could appeal as natural alternatives
Functional fibres in low/reduced sugar food and drink launches are on the rise, increasing globally from 11 % in 2015 to 19 % in 2020. Inulin is the most common functional fibre in low/reduced sugar products, with product launches containing inulin having tripled in the past five years, rising to 9 % in 2020 from 3 % in 2015.
With 63 %*** of Germans concerned about how sugar reduction in food and drink is achieved, combining fibres with sugar to reduce overall sugar content could be an option worth exploring as an alternative. This could also appeal to the 29 %**** of Brits that are interested in more fruit juices, juice drinks and smoothies with high fibre content.
Alternatively, stevia as a plant-based sweetener has the potential to appeal to European consumers as a sugar substitute. In fact, 63 %*** of Germans have no concerns about the amount of plant-based sweeteners (such as stevia) used in food and drink.
Neha Srivastava, Food and Drink Patent Analyst at Mintel, said:
“Consumers are aware of the importance of fibres in maintaining gut health. Brands can leverage this awareness by repositioning them as a multifunctional health ingredient that helps reduce sugar content in food and drink whilst improving gut health.
“Stevia continues to gain traction in food and drink launches because of its naturalness and zero calorific value, but its bitter and lingering aftertaste remains a significant barrier. Recent patent innovations to improve taste issues and physicochemical properties, like purity and solubility, to produce next-generation stevia may help overcome the challenge.
“Innovators are looking for alternative approaches, such as the use of sweet flavouring agents and aromas as a promising option to reduce sugar content in new food and drink products – especially in dairy desserts. This can be a promising option to reduce sugar content by providing sweet perception in brain cells.”
*987 internet users aged 16+ who try to eat/drink healthily, France; 1,955 internet users aged 16+ who try to eat/drink healthily, Germany; 997 internet users aged 16+ who try to eat/drink healthily, Spain; 988 internet users aged 16+ who try to eat/drink healthily, Poland; March 2021
**1,000 internet users aged 16+ in Poland and 2,000 internet users aged 16+ in Germany, December 2020
***2,000 internet users aged 16+, Germany, June 2020
****2,000 internet users aged 16+, UK, October 2020
*****1,000 internet users aged 16+, Italy and Spain, September 2020
Position as a leading global provider of sugar reduction and clean-label solutions strengthened by acquisition of stevia sweetener solutions business
Tate & Lyle PLC (Tate & Lyle), a leading global provider of food and beverage ingredients and solutions, is pleased to announce the acquisition of Sweet Green Fields (SGF), a leading global stevia solutions business.
The acquisition of SGF brings a broad portfolio of stevia products and a fully integrated stevia supply chain to Tate & Lyle including leaf sourcing, leaf varietal development, established agricultural programmes and cost-efficient manufacturing. It strengthens Tate & Lyle’s position as a leading provider of innovative sweetener solutions with the capabilities to create foods and beverages that are lower in sugar and calories and with cleaner labels for customers across the world. The acquisition also extends Tate & Lyle’s presence in the faster growing Asia Pacific region with dedicated stevia production and research and development facilities located in Anji, China.
Tate & Lyle began its partnership with SGF in 2017 becoming the exclusive global distributor of SGF’s portfolio of stevia-based ingredients and solutions, and then acquired a 15 % equity holding in SGF the following year. Tate & Lyle’s acquisition of the remaining shares of SGF simplifies the existing relationship by creating a fully integrated supply chain and commercial organisation, unified research and development capabilities, and combined strengths to accelerate innovation and optimise production technologies. Sweet Green Fields revenue for the year ending 31 December 2020 is expected to be around US$50 million, including revenue for products Tate & Lyle currently sells as distribution agent.
Stevia is one of the fastest growing low-calorie sweeteners used globally, particularly in beverages, dairy and snacks, as demand from consumers continues to grow for foods and beverages that are lower in sugar and calories. Globally, from 2015 to 2019, product launches that contain stevia grew by compound annual growth rate of 15 %.1 In the year ended 31 March 2020, Tate & Lyle’s stevia revenues grew by 23 %, making it an important contributor to New Products revenue growth.
1Mintel GNPD
