The Stevia Story -Olade

With OLA BEVERAGE CO. emerging as one of the foremost cutting-edge brands delivering an organic, stevia-based family of products to consumers, we feel it is important for our customers to know the history of stevia and its prominence today as a safe, calorie-free alternative to sugar and chemically-derived alternative sweeteners.

Stevia is a tiny plant indigenous to Paraguay (from the sunflower family) that is 300 times sweeter than sugar. Because stevia is believed to have no effect on blood sugar levels, it is attractive as a natural sweetener for people who must control their intake of sugars and carbohydrates.

In 1995, the FDA approved the sale of stevia in the U.S. as a supplement. In recent years, major U.S. companies such as Coca-Cola and Cargill have responded to consumer demand for stevia as a leading, natural, zero-calorie way to sweeten foods and beverages. The companies aim to market the sweetener called Truvia culled from the stevia-derived sweetener Rebiana. The supplement is being developed jointly by the two corporations in several countries and on track for regulatory approval here in the U.S.

Stevia is a genus of about 150 herbs and shrubs native to South and Central America. The species stevia rebaudiana (commonly referred to as stevia) is unique in the sweetness of its leaves. The glycosides in its leaves, including up to 10% Stevioside, account for its incredible sweetness. The Guarani natives of Paraguay discovered the plant more than 200 years ago. Stevia has been harvested and enjoyed for centuries by indigenous tribes who used it as a sweetener. Dr. Moses Santiago Bertoni, a Swiss Botanist who emigrated to South America in the late 1800s, was one of the first to help bring the plant to the rest of the world. “In placing the smallest particle of any portion (in the mouth) of the leaf or twig,” wrote Bertoni, “one is surprised at the strange and extreme sweetness….”

In 1931, two French chemists isolated the sweetening compound of the leaf, with one U.S. researcher concurring, calling it at the time, “the sweetest natural product yet found.”

With pre-war U.S. researchers stumped on finding a functional use for stevia, the Japanese culture welcomed it, eventually banning and/or restricting chemically-derived artificial sweeteners by the 1960s and embracing stevia-related products wholeheartedly. By the mid-1980s, stevia-based sweeteners made up more than 40% of the Japanese zero-calorie sweetener market.

Japan’s widespread use also led to the sweetener gaining traction here in the U.S., as well as helping to prove stevia’s adaptability and safety. The widespread usage of stevia in South America (spanning dozens of generations) with no known health effects also spurred U.S. users and organic marketplace proponents to increase their endorsement of stevia.

More roadblocks were on the horizon, however. By the late-1980s the powerful U.S. sugar lobby began to clandestinely block the spread of stevia as a healthy, calorie-free sugarless alternative. Studies citing suspect health effects of stevia (which many believe were funded by the sugar and artificial sweetener industries) began to dent the U.S. prospects of stevia becoming a healthy sugarless replacement. In the early 1990s, the U.S. Food and Drug administration concluded there was insufficient data to demonstrate stevia’s safety as a food additive and restricted its use. In the mid-1990s, Congress declared it safe as a dietary food supplement, and the battle over its safety as a natural no-calorie sweetener with no after-effects continued. To this day, many health food experts believe the initial complaints to the FDA regarding stevia were unfairly lodged on behalf of the powerful sugar lobby.

More recently, stevia has been the focus of national and international attention as beverage and food companies continue to search for a sugar free sugar replacement low in calories. With hundreds of studies showing stevia is a safe alternative to sugar and chemically-derived sweeteners currently flooding the U.S. market, it is now largely recognized as one of the most promising supplements to hit the U.S. organic market in years.

In 2006, the World Health Organization evaluated numerous stevia studies and concluded that stevia does show evidence of beneficial effects on hypertension and diabetes. Approximately a dozen other countries currently approve the use of stevia as a sweetener supplement in food and beverages, including Canada, China, Japan and Brazil.

With major U.S. based global brands such as Coca-Cola and Cargill now finalizing plans to bring Rebiana, a zero-calorie sweetener derived from the leaves of the stevia plant, to U.S. consumers, many organic marketplace experts claim it is only a matter of time until the FDA will lift its restrictions on stevia as a food additive. The two companies continue to conduct and release their own studies promoting the health effects and stability of the calorie-free natural sweetener in an effort to gain regulatory approval in the U.S.
The key health claims of stevia are:
• Sugar free (zero calories)
• Zero net carbs/zero glycemic index
• Supports blood sugar stabilization
• Derived from a natural plant source
• Safe for diabetics
• Supports dental hygiene
• Supports diet management
• Supports weight loss

For additional information on stevia, other Olade™ ingredients and the Olade health and wellness mission, visit the company’s website at www.olade.com.