Cargill has agreed to settle a proposed class action lawsuit alleging it is misleading shoppers by marketing its Truvia consumer products (which contain stevia extract Reb-A and erythritol) as ‘natural’.
A bill proposing sweeping changes to food labeling laws covering everything from ‘natural’ claims to whole grain statements has been welcomed by consumer groups, but stands little chance of success, legal experts have told FoodNavigator-USA.
Leading stevia supplier PureCircle says “investments and assets are in place from agriculture to manufacturing” to be ready to commercialize two next generation stevia products - Reb D and Reb X - in 2014.
About a year on from OatSweet’s initial push into the U.S. sweetener marketplace, Oat Tech CEO and founder, Dr. Paul Whalen, caught up with FoodNavigator-USA on the growth areas—both expected and unforeseen—for this natural, oat-based sweetener.
The pace of progress on the joint development program of Cargill and Evolva to produce fermentation-based steviol glycosides is ‘exceeding expectations’ with the resulting ingredients potentially hitting the market earlier than expected.
Stevia First, an early stage company based in Yuba City, CA, has built its business model on bringing stevia production onshore in the US. Supply chain transparency and technical innovation are the two pillars on which the company is built, said CEO...
Consumers’ palates are becoming increasingly eclectic, flavor experts agree, and that makes it a challenging environment for flavor houses, but one that is full of opportunity, too.
Genetically influenced responses to sweeteners may mean that food and beverage companies require a range of artificial sweeteners to accommodate different consumer tastes.
Flavour and fragrance ingredient supplier Treatt has created a new tea formula adapted to the specific flavour of stevia in response to a growing market trend for natural sweeteners.
Big interview: Jay Klein, founder & CEO, Action Candy Company (PÜR Gum)
You don’t launch a new brand in the gum category by calling the buyer at Walmart and asking nicely for some shelf-space at the checkout between Juicy Fruit and Trident, observes the founder of aspartame-free PÜR Gum.
Stevia supplier GLG Lifetech is working with China’s largest food company - state-owned COFCO (China National Cereals, Oils, and Foodstuffs Corporation) - on three major healthy food and beverage formulation projects.
Scientists at Philadelphia-based start-up Opertech Bio have developed a groundbreaking new approach to high-throughput taste evaluation using highly trained rats that can analyze the taste quality and palatability of scores of flavor samples simultaneously...
WhiteWave Foods has filed a motion to dismiss the latest in a “tsunami of lawsuits” alleging consumers are being misled by the use of the term ‘evaporated cane juice’ (ECJ) to describe dried sugar cane syrup (aka sugar).
A Minnesota-based firm making waves with anthocyanin-packed purple-corn ingredients says it has had significant interest from the snack food market, but is also talking to microbrewers, confectioners, and firms manufacturing everything from sourdough...
Stevia sweeteners can now be developed through fermentation – rather than extraction from stevia plants – but it is the plant-based message that is most important to consumers, according to (plant-derived) stevia supplier PureCircle.
Stevia trade association the International Stevia Council (ISC) has called for more end users to become involved in its activities, to spur sustainability and more uniform standards in the sector.
Dr Pepper Snapple (DPS) CEO Larry Young says the firm is very concerned by US sales declines in diet sodas and the company’s below average performance in that category.
For Justin Woolverton, founder and CEO of premium ice cream brand Halo Top Creamery, life had become too sweet and too sour at the same time. A dissatisfaction with his career path and a dietary restriction landed him in the freezer aisle.
A lawsuit filed in Hawaii alleges that Cargill is misleading shoppers by marketing its Truvia retail products as ‘natural’ as the Reb-A steviol glycosides they contain are "highly chemical processed" and the bulking agent used (erythritol) is...
FoodNavigator-USA's intrepid editorial team headed to the windy city to chew the fat (or maybe replace it with algae) with the great and the good of the global food industry, and keep up to speed with the latest developments in everything from open...
PureCircle insists it newly GRAS-approved stevia-based sweetener Rebaudioside D can deliver ‘great tasting products’ well beyond a 30% threshold typically associated with Rebaudioside A alone.
The US FDA has issued a ‘No Objection’ GRAS letter allowing beverage manufacturers to use Pure Circle’s high-purity Reb D stevia to sweeten US products, a move that could reignite the Pepsi/Coke cola wars.
Big interview: Brian Meadows, president, GLG Life Tech
Stevia supplier GLG Life Tech has resumed trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and reassured investors that “the stevia market is growing worldwide, and we are positioned to take full advantage.”
The Coca-Cola Company and JV partner PureCircle have discovered and made progress in developing a new stevia-based food ingredient Rebaudioside X and are seeking GRAS approval for it in the US.
While the zero-calorie natural sweetener stevia is now used in scores of high-profile brands from Sprite Select to Vitamin Water Zero, the only top-tier cola brand to try it to date has been the Australian formulation of Pepsi Next, which has 30% less...
If it sounds like a ‘chemical’, or isn’t in the kitchen cupboard, shoppers may regard it with suspicion. But which ingredients are 'acceptable' to today's consumers, which are to be avoided, and who decides?
Recent data from Symphony Consulting (click here), shows that while US retail sales of products making ‘natural’ claims still grew in 2012, the pace of that growth slowed noticeably compared with the 2009-11 period.
In an order that will be read carefully by those following ‘natural’ labeling lawsuits, a California judge has rejected an argument routinely made by defendants - that the FDA has primary jurisdiction when it comes to judging whether ‘natural’ claims...
Coca-Cola has pledged to offer low- or no- calorie beverage options in every market following criticism that it is still aggressively promoting full-sugar products in emerging markets while offering healthier options at home.
Growth rates of several individual label claims under the health & wellness umbrella have started to level off, according to new research from Symphony Consulting.
Formulators seeking reduced-sugar cookies that are also acceptable to consumers may consider inulin to replace some of the sucrose, but erythritol isn’t a valid option, suggests new research from Spain.
A patent application filed by PepsiCo reveals some of the more “surprising” properties of Rebaudioside D (Reb-D) - the steviol glycoside claimed to have one of the best sweetness profiles of them all.
Natural Taste Consulting (NTC) has developed a new natural fat enhancer that works by stimulating fat taste receptors, replicating the taste and aroma of fat.
Dispatches from the RCA annual conference & culinology expo
Swiss firm Evolva Holding has partnered with Cargill to develop and commercialise stevia extracts derived from a fermentation process, rather than through traditional extraction from the stevia plant.
The first products containing the steviol glycoside Reb D - which has “one of the best sweetness profiles of any steviol glycoside from the stevia leaf” - will be introduced in the US in the second half of this year, says PureCircle.
While obesity in America has reached epidemic proportions, manufacturers seeking to help us battle the bulge are avoiding the word ‘diet’ like the plague; cutting sugar, fat and salt by stealth; and instead promoting more positive messages about food...
GMO Inside, a national coalition of companies and organizations, has marshaled a public Valentine’s Day campaign to pressure Hershey and Mars to drop GMO ingredients or to label them in their chocolate candies.
Acquisitions have helped Ingredion insulate itself from price swings on high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), according to a company official during the company’s fourth quarter earnings call.
Big Interview: Brad Kloss, founder and CEO, FitPro
Launching a new product into the ultra-competitive ready-to-drink (RTD) protein shake market is not for the faint-hearted. But being a minnow in a pool of sharks doesn’t faze the founder of FitPro, who reckons he can give Muscle Milk a run for its money.
For Ben & Jerry’s, the Vermont-based ice cream company, taking the step to remove GMO ingredients from its supply chain was simply a matter of paying attention. Not necessarily to the news, to political pressure, or even to consumer attitudes. It...
Steviva Brands has launched a new stevia-based syrup blend designed to replace high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in beverages, and claims it is a no added sugar ‘magic bullet’ for sweetening drinks.
From food ingredients that reduce the blood glucose response to food intake, to natural high-potency sweeteners, digestive health and weight management ingredients, and plant-based ingredients that can mask bitter flavors…
COMING TOGETHER OR FALLING APART? COKE'S ANTI-OBESITY ADVERT DIVIDES OPINION
Leading food nutrition academic Marion Nestle tells BeverageDaily.com that she considers Coke’s new anti-obesity advertising drive ‘Coming Together’ an ‘astonishing act of chutzpah’.
Food and beverage companies need to ‘redefine’ the concept of age in 2013 to seize specific growth opportunities presented by older consumers, according to Leatherhead Food Research.
Unit volumes of energy drinks were up a whopping 18.7% in 2012 - a staggering achievement given that unit sales of consumer packaged goods across all outlets slumped 0.3% over the same period - according to Symphony IRI*.
A new player in the stevia supply market promising purity levels “unmatched in the market place” says it will be in a position to start supplying commercial quantities of extracts by Q1, 2013 from a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Thailand.
Sweet Green Fields (SGF) plans to significantly expand its stevia crop in Georgia and North Carolina in 2013 in a bid to bolster supplies of American-grown stevia extracts.
From coconut water, to Greek yogurt, gluten-free, veggie proteins, dairy-alternatives, non-GMO and whole grains; what were the biggest trends of 2012, and what’s on the menu for 2013?
