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The search for a safe, great tasting, natural, zero calorie sweetener is now over. Truvia® stevia leaf extract comes only from the best-tasting components of the stevia leaf and is a high-purity sweetener that is consistent in quality and taste. This sweetener is different from stevia used in dietary supplements, which typically refers to a mixture of many components from the stevia leaf.
In 2004, Cargill commissioned a rigorous set of scientific studies that established the ingredient's safety for use in food and beverages as a general purpose sweetener. The results were published in Food and Chemical Toxicology, a peer-reviewed scientific journal. A panel of independent experts reviewed a dossier with all available safety information relevant to Truvia® stevia leaf extract, and concluded that Truvia® stevia leaf extract is safe for use as a general purpose sweetener.
In December of 2008, Cargill received official agency response (sometimes called a letter of no objection) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration affirming that rebaudioside A (technical term for Truvia® stevia leaf extract) is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) for use as a general purpose sweetener.
Cargill developed Truvia® stevia leaf extract as a natural, zero-calorie sweetening ingredient for use in food and beverages. Cargill commissioned a rigorous safety evaluation program for Truvia® stevia leaf extract in consultation with regulatory authorities, leading scientists and respected research institutions. The results of the Truvia® stevia leaf extract research program have addressed previously unresolved questions and established the safety of Truvia® stevia leaf extract for use as a general purpose sweetener. This overview describes the rationale, design and results of the program.
To understand the context and purpose of the Truvia® stevia leaf extract safety program, it is important
to understand the relationship between Truvia® stevia leaf extract, stevia and various components of the
stevia plant: Stevia typically refers to a crude preparation (powder or liquid) made
from the leaves of the stevia plant. Such preparations contain a mixture of many
components, not just those that give a sweet taste to the leaf. Because the exact
composition of the mixture is unknown, studies that have used "stevia" are often
difficult to interpret.
Steviol glycosides are the sweet components of the stevia leaf.
There are various kinds of steviol glycosides, but the two most abundant types are stevioside and rebaudioside A.
Stevioside is the most abundant steviol glycoside in the stevia leaf. It has been studied extensively.
Rebaudioside A is the best-tasting steviol glycoside. It is metabolized in the same way as stevioside.
Truvia® stevia leaf extract is purified rebaudioside A. Truvia® stevia leaf extract was the first high-purity,
well-characterized form of rebaudioside A that is purified from the leaf consistently to a food grade specification.
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Stevia and its components have been evaluated in a range of studies over the past five decades.
The studies have varied widely in purpose, design and quality, and have thus yielded sometimes
inconsistent results.
Some smaller studies used crude preparations from or extracts of stevia - an undefined mixture
of many components - making it difficult to attribute the results to any one substance
within the leaf.
In addition to past use of uncharacterized or crude materials, some investigations used
non-oral (non-dietary) routes of administration. Based on what is known about metabolism, this
route of exposure is not relevant for the safety evaluation of a sweetener, which is consumed
in food in beverages. Several attempts have been made in the past to petition the FDA for
approval of stevia as a food additive. However, the petitioners could not provide sufficient
data to the FDA to address key questions about the composition, quality and safety of stevia.
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Cargill enlisted leading scientists to design and conduct a rigorous safety evaluation program
for Truvia® stevia leaf extract - the first such program to test a well-characterized, high-purity form of rebaudioside A.
Prior to this program, safety data on rebaudioside A was limited to several smaller metabolism and
safety studies. However, stevioside had been evaluated extensively. Since rebaudioside A is broken
down into the same basic parts in the body as stevioside, data from studies of purified stevioside
are directly applicable in the safety assessment of Truvia® stevia leaf extract.
The objectives of the Truvia® stevia leaf extract safety program were to:
The outcomes of the Truvia® stevia leaf extract scientific evaluation program confirmed the safety findings
of earlier studies (of purified rebaudioside A and stevioside) while addressing unresolved
questions and gaps in the data. The results help to fulfill regulatory requirements and
to bring Truvia® stevia leaf extract to consumers around the world.
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ATLANTA, Ga., WAYZATA, Minn., [May 15, 2008] — Research published electronically today in the peer-reviewed
scientific journal Food and Chemical Toxicology clearly establishes the safety of Truvia® stevia leaf extract (common or usual name for high-purity
Rebaudioside A from stevia) for general use to sweeten foods and beverages, according to experts at Cargill and The Coca-Cola Company.
Truvia® stevia leaf extract is the first consistent, high-purity sweetener composed of rebaudioside A, the best-tasting part of the stevia leaf. Beginning
in 2004, Cargill commissioned a rigorous safety evaluation program for Truvia® stevia leaf extract in consultation with leading scientists.
Cargill, in partnership with The Coca-Cola Company, has developed Truvia® stevia leaf extract as a natural, zero-calorie ingredient which will be
marketed by Cargill under the brand name TRUVIA®.
"These newly published data complement the body of existing scientific research on steviol glycosides, the sweet
components of the stevia leaf," said Leslie Curry, regulatory and scientific affairs director, Cargill Food and
Ingredient Systems. "The Truvia® stevia leaf extract research program affirmed positive safety data from earlier studies on purified
steviol glycosides and addressed unresolved questions resulting from studies with crude stevia extracts."
“TRUVIA™ natural sweetener was developed to meet the strong consumer demand for a natural, zero calorie way to
sweeten foods and beverages. Truvia® stevia leaf extract provides a new great tasting alternative that meets that demand,” said Zanna
McFerson, business director for Cargill Health and Nutrition. “The results of this research program pave the way
to bring this long sought after sweetener to U.S. consumers.”
Although stevia today is sold in the U.S. as a dietary supplement, Truvia® stevia leaf extract will be the first available sweetener
for foods and beverages that has been purified from the stevia plant. Unlike many existing stevia products, which
generally contain crude extracts of the plant, Truvia® stevia leaf extract is a fully-characterized product that is consistent in quality
and contains only the best-tasting components of the stevia leaf.
“We are pleased that these studies have proved definitively that Truvia® stevia leaf extract is safe,” said Dr. Rhona Applebaum,
vice president and chief scientific and regulatory officer of The Coca-Cola Company.
Rebaudioside A, the best-tasting component (steviol glycoside) of the stevia leaf. Truvia® stevia leaf extract is at least 97% rebaudioside A; other steviol glycosides make up the remaining 3 %. Truvia® stevia leaf extract was the first high-purity, well-characterized form of rebaudioside A.
The best-tasting of the steviol glycosides found in the stevia leaf.
The sweet components of the stevia leaf. There are various kinds of steviol glycosides, but the two most abundant types are stevioside and rebaudioside A.
The most plentiful of the steviol glycosides found in the stevia leaf. Stevioside has been extensively studied over the past several decades.
In the context of sweeteners or dietary supplements, "stevia" typically refers to a crude preparation (powder or liquid) made from the leaves of the stevia plant. Such preparations contain a mixture of many components, not just those that give a sweet taste to the leaf. Because the exact composition of "stevia" is unknown, scientific studies that have used crude preparations are difficult to interpret.
