On 14 April 2011 Fi Conferences hosted the conference ‘Legislation & Regulation for NPD & Reformulation’ in the beautiful Radisson Blu Royal Hotel in Brussels. Although the subject was not Stevia, 5 of the 10 expert speakers were talking about Stevia and/or steviol glycosides. 

Barbara Gallani (Food & Drink Federation) opened from the Conference Chair, mentioning that Stevia would be discussed during the conference. 

Nino Binns (NB Consulting) outlined the upcoming legislative changes for F&B over the next 12 months and announced that steviol glycosides would be part in these changes. 

Annie-Laure Robin (Leatherhead Food Research) tried to align the different viewpoints of regulatory bodies, industry stakeholders and consumers to develop one common understanding. Steviol glycosides were one of the products in her presentation. 

Inga Köhler (Analyze & Realize) talked during her whole presentation about ‘Understanding the regulatory process behind Stevia approval in Europe and what is to be expected in 2011’. 

Susanne Kettler (Coca-Cola Europe) introduced her presentation with her view on Stevia as a sweetener. Coca-Cola uses rebaudioside A as a sweetener in Fanta Still in France already. 

Some attendants during a break

For more info about the content of the conference: www.fi-stevia.com.

Chairman Luca Quagliani opened the afternoon session, introducing the first speaker (Jordi Ferre). His subject was the Stevia ’s evolution to a mainstream sweetener. 

Jordi Ferre

 The second speaker was Matthias Saß, talking about the qualities of Stevia as an ingredient. 

Matthias Sass

Prof. Dr. Fred Brouns (Maastricht University), as scientist gave his opinion on ‘Stevia as an option for sugar reduction strategies’.

Prof. Dr. Fred Brouns

To find out more details about copies of the presentations slides, please go to: www.hieconference.com.

The first presentation, made by Carole Bingley (Innovation Development Manager at Reading Scientific Sciences) was about ‘New Developments in High Potency Sweeteners’.

Carole Bingley

Carole Bingley explained the reasons to reduce sugar consumption and what the alternatives to sucrose are, especially focussing on ‘new’ high potency sweeteners.
She talked about steviol glycosides (extracted from the honey leaf, Stevia rebaudiana) and luo han guo (extracted from Chinese monk fruit, Siratia grosvenorii) and about the challenges and opportunities of using these sweeteners.
With a case study (with rebaudioside A, the approved steviol glycoside for consumption in France) to reduce the sugar content of a beverage, it was suggested that luo han guo works well with rebaudioside –both extractions from plants currently waiting to be approved as a novel food in the EU.

Carole Bingley has a BSc in Food Science from the University of Reading and an MSc in Nutritional Medicine from the University of Surrey.  She worked for the independent consultancy LinTech from 1993 until 2000 and has been with Reading Scientific Services Ltd since 2000.  During this time she has carried out projects for a variety of high potency sweetener manufacturers and worked for companies looking to formulate products with high potency sweeteners.

After the opening words of Mrs Camilla Sandvik (European Commission – Directorate General Health and Consumers, Directorate C Public health and risk assessment, Luxembourg), Prof. Dr. Marvin Edeas (ISANH) opened the conference with a general outline of the effects of antioxidants on oxidative stress and hyperglycemia.

Next, Prof. Dr. Jan Geuns (KULeuven) presented an overview of Stevia and steviol glycosides in terms of their toxicological and pharmacological effects, including the newest results regarding their radical scavenging activity.

After a short break, Mr. Peter Paul Meli (Malta Enterprise) presented his company as a large contributor to attract foreign investors to Malta.

Next, Mrs. Olivia Sant’Angelo (Innova Market Insight) gave an idea of the developing trends on the Stevia market, especially focusing on the different labeling of food products containing steviol glycosides.

The last speaker of the morning was Mr. Jim May (SweetLeaf Sweeteners) who gave a passionate lecture about his lifelong experience with Stevia, his struggle with the FDA to get approval of the use of steviol glycosides in the United States and about the benefits of water extracted Stevia extracts.

After lunch, Mrs. Katja Obst (Technische Universität München)discussed in detail the sensory profiles of various Stevia extracts. Afterwards, Mrs. Claudia Scholten (Jungbunzlauer Austria)spoke about methods to improve the taste of Stevia by combining with other agents which are able to mask the bitter and liquorice off-notes of Stevia.

Dr. Etienne Jooken (KHBO, VUB)presented his latest results regarding the stability of steviol glycosides in diverse food matrices, including the modified methods to extract them out of food.

After a short break, Mrs. Justine Lord (Naturex) introduced Talin, the brand name for thaumatin, a natural flavor enhancer and taste modifier.

Mrs. Lucy Dahlgren (Bayn Europe) gave the last presentation of the day about the development of synergies to achieve a higher performance of Stevia knowledge and practice.

Her presentation was followed by a head panel discussion led by Prof. Dr. Marvin Edeas (ISANH), Mr. Jim May (SweetLeaf Sweeteners) and Prof. Dr. Jan Geuns (KULeuven). The idea of a World Stevia Organization was discussed, along with strategies to bring Stevia to the public and to translate the underlying science without losing credibility. The discussion was ended with an introduction of Capsentis, an information exchange platform which offers an opportunity to discuss Stevia and spread its knowledge to all levels of society.

The second day of the conference handled the topic of Stevia Growing: Opportunities & Challenge.

Dr. Sourabh Agarwal (India Stevia Association)gave a long lecture about the development of Stevia in India and about the system of contract farming as a solution to achieve a more farmer-oriented production of Stevia and steviol glycosides.

Next, Dr. Yaroslav Shevchenko (Technische Universität Berlin)presented a new cultivation practice based upon liquid sprout cultures of  Stevia. Compared to classical agriculture, sprout cultures of Stevia can be harvested more regularly, with higher yields of biomass and steviol glycosides.

The last lecture on Stevia was given by Mr. Stijn Ceunen (KULeuven). He discussed the biological factors influencing the accumulation of steviol glycosides within the plant and easy methods to achieve higher yields.

To close the conference, Prof. Dr. Marvin Edeas (ISANH) led a discussion to tackle the most important questions on Stevia. It seems that both the manufacturers and the consumers need clear and unambiguous answers as the European Union is nearing the approval of the use of steviol glycosides as food additives.

Finally, the Stevia Innovation Award 2010 was given to Mrs. Justine Lord for the development of Talin^®. The Stevia 2010 Award was given to Mr. Angus Flood and Mr. Jim May of SweetLeaf.

Although technological and scientific advances are adding another few pieces to the Stevia puzzle, it became clear that there is still some work to do regarding the alignment of the different marketing strategies of Stevia. This way, all players will be well prepared for the final approval of the use of steviol glycosides in Europe.

The Council has been created in July 2010 by eleven founding members: Cargill, Corn Products International, GLG Life Tech Corporation, Granular, Morita Kagaku Kogyo, PureCircle Limited, Sunwin, Sweet Green Fields, SweetLeaf Sweeteners, Verdure Sciences Europe and the Whole Earth Sweetener Company.

“All of the founding members share a common vision to promote naturally-sourced Stevia extracts as a way to improve the diets and health of people globally by addressing sugars and calories in food” said Maria Teresa Scardigli, Executive Director of the International Stevia Council.

Membership in the International Stevia Council is open to any company engaged in the processing and/or manufacturing and marketing of Stevia products with a purity level in accordance with JECFA (Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives) specifications. The founding members of the organization have also committed to establish and participate in an industry proficiency testing program to ensure accurate analytical methods for measuring the purity of Stevia extracts.

The International Stevia Council is managed by its staff in its Global Office in Brussels (Belgium).

For more information on the International Stevia Council:

On day one (29 June 2010) in the first session (Culture and growth of Stevia), speakers were Yaroslav Shevchenko (Sprout culture of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni) and Florence Berglund (Developing a truly sustainable ingredient, which meets the 3 criteria of sustainability: social, environmental and economic benefits).

In the second session (Legal aspects) Ivo Roelants talked about “Stevia patents, what is it all about” and Christine Vinkx commented “Positive opinion EFSA: what is next?”.

Session 3 (Technical aspects) about the analysis of steviol glycosides consisted of “Stevia Analytical Testing: Why the Industry needs a Proficiency Program” (Frank Jaksch), “Second round-robin testing” (Jan Geuns) and “Determination of Steviol Glycosides in various Dairy Matrices” (Boudewijn Meesschaert).

Next speakers were Etienne Jooken (Ultra-High Pressure liquid Chromatography for the Analysis of Steviol Glycosides) and Tom Struyf (Development of an internal standard and validation of the methods).

Day two (20 June 2010), with session 4 (Use of steviol glycosides) started with Claudia Scholten (Methods to influence the taste and sweetness profile of Stevia) and Katja Obst (Sensory characterization of Stevia). Next speakers were Felix Verdegem (Development of Belgian chocolate) and Per Jeppesen (Isosteviol elevates plasma HDL –cholesterol  level –a potential new drug for the treatment of coronary heart disease),  .

In the afternoon session (Pharmacological effects of steviol glycosides and derivatives, already started by Per Jeppesen before noon) speakers were Minne Geeraert (Steviol glycosides and obesity), Marvin Edeas (Oxidative stress and antioxidants: Were is the target? Can Stevia modulate the oxidative stress induced by glucose?), Hasan Mohajeri (Cognitive health effects of steviol glycosides) and Jan Geuns (Radical scavenging activity of steviol glycosides). The climax for the very few was given by Jan Geuns at the ending. He just used a white board to show the synthesis of the ROS scavenging activity of steviol glycosides and steviol glucuronide.

Pictures of the event

Stevia Industry Panel discussion, being Chaired by Angus Flood (SweetLeaf Sweetener) on 19 May 2010 (2nd SteviaWorld Europe, organised by CMT) in Geneva, as noted by Roland Lemaire. Photo: Roland Lemaire

James A. May (SweetLeaf Sweetener), about Food & Beverage opportunities:

“The taste of natural Stevia extracts is determined by several factors (variety of leafs, the soil, the climate, exposure to sunlight, harvest techniques, storage, extraction techniques, etc.) “. His advice to product developers is to  “try different Stevia extracts, blended with other flavours until you find the right taste”.

James Kempland (GLG Life Tech) talked about mainstreaming Stevia as a natural sweetener, not focussing solely on the zero calories. He talked about the new paradigm: Stevia being a new sweetener, blended or not. He also concluded that consumers decide what will be on the market.

Derek A. Newman (Zevia) focussed on the desirability of the industry as a whole and individual companies communicating the enjoyment of  products sweetened by Stevia and on promoting the connection with Stevia on labelling and in marketing communications..

To avoid confusion about the different terms used in the media James A. May gave the advice to read the available scientific books and studies about Stevia and its extracts (each stage of extraction changes the constituents). Angus Flood highlighted that in taste terms, Stevia, as a plant, is different from its various extracted forms (Stevioside, Rebaudioside A, etc.). He added, the extract taste quality  is significantly affected by the processing environment. Joel Perret (Stevia Natura) commented that from a consumer perspective, it is very important to use the right terms, especially in Europe. In France the media created confusion when they announced that Stevia was allowed (yet in France only Rebaudioside A with a purity of 97% is allowed).

The speakers agreed on the benefit of working together and helping each other (US, EU, etc.). It was further agreed that a Global stevia organisation would be timely and necessary to the continuing successful development of this emerging industry. All speakers emphasised the absolute safety of Stevia extracts as natural sweeteners and the support of the US FDA, WHO JECFA and the EFSA safety committees in bringing stevia as a permissible ingredient to the consumer who is seeking demonstrably natural, zero calorie sweetening in an ethical sourcing context.

About the current situation & recent scientific advances speakers there were Dr. Marvin Edeas, Prof. Jan Geuns and Ms. Benjamine Geeraert. The regulation and application of Stevia in agro-food industries and dietary supplements were presented by Dr. Joël Perret and Mr. Alexandre Sacerdoti. Marketing and pleasure aspects about Stevia were commented by Mrs. Françoise Dassetto and Mr. Thierry Liot.

Fragments of the round table discussion in the presence of speakers, industrials and government personnel can be seen in next video.