SweeGen’s highly soluble and zero-calorie stevia solution Bestevia Rebaudioside B (Reb B) has been granted Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) approval in the US market. 

This distinction from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) qualifies the sweetener’s placement in SweeGen’s stevia portfolio, which includes Rebs D, E, I and M. 

“This GRAS status is a great milestone for food and beverage manufacturers because Bestevia Reb B expands the toolkit for tackling the hurdles of reducing sugar in products, especially in beverages,” says Hadi Omrani, SweeGen’s director of technical and regulatory affairs.

Following this regulatory approval, SweeGen is targeting collaborations with brands on functional beverages with unique flavors and nutritional ingredients.

Bestevia Reb B is only found in trace amounts in the stevia leaf, much like its sweet-tasting counterparts in SweeGen’s stevia sweetener portfolio.

Bestevia Reb B is only found in trace amounts in the stevia leaf, much like its sweet-tasting counterparts in SweeGen’s stevia sweetener portfolio. (Credit: SweeGen)Since the best-tasting sweetener molecules are found in such small quantities in the leaves, SweeGen uses its proprietary bioconversion technology to produce a range of sustainable stevia sweeteners with assured regulatory compliance.

Last year, SweeGen announced Bestevia Reb B’s readiness for commercial production. The stevia specialist will continue to focus on application technology, taste modulation expertise and regional consumer trends following this development.

No slowing sugar reduction
Health, wellness and lifestyle modifications are on the mind of most consumers as pandemic conditions have them moving away from artificial sweeteners and sugar, notes SweeGen. 

Sugar reduction ties into Innova Market Insights’ Top Trend of “Macronutrient Makeover,” which shows no signs of abating. Data from the global market researcher reveals 91 percent of consumers are “at least a little” influenced by sugar reduction claims.

Implementation of front-of pack-labeling schemes – such as Nutri-Score, which is seeing increased adoption in various European markets, or the traffic light system in the UK – allows consumers to understand better the composition of products in terms of the amounts of energy and nutrients the product provides.

In a recent FoodIngredientsFirst “Science of Sweet” report, suppliers highlighted that the sugar reduction segment is branching out into a myriad of high-intensity natural sweeteners, including wheat- and barley-based syrups, reduced-sugar glucose syrup and fermentation-based stevia extracts.