Cargill Rolls out Stevia-Based Sweetener
Cargill has begun marketing of Truvia, a no-calorie sweetener made from certain compounds in the leaves of stevia, a shrub native to Paraguay. Truvia is intended to provide a natural alternative to artificial sweeteners such as Sweet ‘N Low, Equal and Splenda.Truvia will first go on sale first at a handful of D’Agostino supermarkets in Manhattan, but will eventually be sold at grocery stores and big box retailers across the country.
A box of 40 packets of Truvia will have a suggested retail price of $3.99, which is slightly more expensive than currently available artificial sweeteners.
Truvia also will be used as a sweetener in beverages and foods starting in early 2009. Coca-Cola co-developed the product with Cargill and has exclusive rights to use Truvia in beverages. Rivals including PepsiCo and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group are working on their own natural no-calorie sweeteners.
Stevia is approved as a food additive in a dozen countries including Japan, Brazil and China, but not in the European Union or the United States. It can only be sold in the U.S. as a dietary supplement. However, since Truvia is made only with compounds from the stevia plant, it can be legally used as a natural sweetener.
Hi! We use stevia in our drink - ZEVIA. It is a natural alternative to diet soda. We beat Coke to the punch by over a year. Email me at ian at zevia dot com and I will send you sample if you want to review it. Cola, Orange, Twist and Ginger Root Beer.