"Reb E is one of the main components in our BESTEVIA e+ formulation. E+ was specifically created for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, with the existing application patents around Reb M in beverage in mind," said Shari Joslin, VP of Application Technology. "Reb E, mixed with other stevia sweeteners, creates a mouthfeel and taste closest to sugar.”

BESTEVIA e+, while initially created for beverages, is said to show great success in reducing sugar and artificial sweeteners in many applications, such as dairy, sports nutrition and bakeries.

"Our non-GMO BESTEVIA e+ provides a clean, sugar-like taste with a most competitive price, comparable to sugar," said Katharina Pueller, director natural sweetener business.

BESTEVIA Reb E, which SweeGen describes as non-caloric, high-purity stevia sweetener with a clean, sugar-like taste, is produced through a stevia leaf based bioconversion process. Canadian Food and Beverage companies are working on reformulating their products to reduce sugar and artificial sweeteners.

The ingredient joins non-GMO BESTEVIA Reb M and BESTEVIA Reb D as part of a range of novel stevia leaf sweeteners SweeGen offers to the flavour, food and beverage industries. Having received Canadian approval as well as the No Objection Letter from the US FDA, SweeGen says it will continuously pursue global approvals.