France and rest of Europe are preparing for stevia approval

As pointed out by the global online newsmagazine Food Navigator, French Food and Beverage manufacturers are getting ready with their product formulations, to launch new stevia-sweetened products as soon as the approval is signed off, which is expected to happen this summer.

The French authorities are about to sign off an approval of high purity Reb A, one of the sweet components of the stevia leaf, as a food additive. The Swedish stevia producer Granular has been following the advancement of this effort very closely, and regrets that this approval only concerns Reb A, and will not cover the whole family of the sweet components found in the stevia leaf.

Reb A, at a minimum concentration of 97% is the specific component of the stevia leaf which as recognized as safe by the FDA in December 08. However, qualitative studies carried out among European consumers have shown a clear preference for the fuller and more rounded taste obtained via lower concentrations of Reb A, allowing larger concentrations of the other steviol glycosides. Furthermore, as pointed out by Prof. Dr. Jan Geuns, the Director or EUSTAS, the European Association of Stevia, there is full scientific evidence of the safety of the whole family of steviol glycosides. EUSTAS therefore officially requested, last April, that AFSSA, the French Food and Safety Agency, works on an extending the upcoming "Reb A" approval to all the steviol glycosides.

The respective proportion of steviol glycosides in the final refined stevia extract only affects the taste, not the safety of the product. Granular is therefore very satisfied of EUSTAS's initiative, as an authorization of steviol glycosides will allow the French Food and Beverage manufacturing industry to choose from a wide range of flavors, for the benefit of the consumer. AFSSA's opinion on this extended draft approval is expecting to be given very soon after the approval of Reb A.

At the European level, EFSA is expected to approve the whole family of steviol glycosides, at a minimum purity of 95%, by the end of 2010 and the resulting legal authorization is expected for 2011 at the latest.

To read the full article published on Food Navigator and quoting the two major steviol glycoside producers PureCircle and Granular, click here.