FLAVOURS & TRENDS
are novel bio-technologies that are produced via enzymatic conversion or fermentation also, providing a cost-competitive alternative to the direct
plant extract. Neither of these
technologies have been approved in Europe yet but recently EFSA published a positive opinion for the use of one of the enzymatic processes so a change in legislation may follow. These ingredients were approved and can currently be used in the US, Australia, New Zealand and several other countries.
“Despite these limitations, we have decided to pursue our natural revolution with what is available: stevia. One challenge to overcome was the negative taste perception of stevia- containing products launched in Europe since the stevia approval in 2011.”
Other sweet materials found in nature such as erythritol and thaumatin have been approved as flavour enhancers – so their use is limited.
Europe versus the rest of the world In Europe, the maximum level of steviol glycosides in drinks has been limited to 80 ppm (parts per million, mg/L) of steviol equivalence, which is equal to about 240 ppm of Reb A, the most common glycoside observed in the plant. Assuming it
is about 200–250 times
the sweetness of sugar, at the legal limit the sweetness that can be obtained from stevia is equal to that of about 5-6% of sugar max. This means it is extremely challenging to make a sugar-free drink with stevia in Europe as the sweetness that it can provide at the maximum level is not even close to the sweetness generally expected in soft drinks. This is not the case in the rest of the world where JECFA (Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives – FAO and WHO) guidelines are followed and significantly higher stevia levels are allowed (200 ppm of steviol equivalence vs the 80 ppm in the EU). Another group of sweet molecules classified as mogrosides and extracted from a Chinese melon called monkfruit (Luo Han Guo in Chinese)
16 | Beverage Essentials Handbook
have been approved in Asia, the US (GRAS Status since 2010), Canada, Australia, New Zealand and several Latin American countries. Monkfruit extracts combined with stevia would allow the development of naturally sweetened/ sugar free
drinks as sweet as a full-sugar
alternative and provide technical advantages, for example, a more sugar-like, sweet time- intensity profile. An application has been submitted to EFSA for approval of mogrosides in Europe in 2017, which is pending approval at the time of writing.
Growing for good under the current circumstances Despite these limitations, we have decided to pursue our natural revolution with what is available: stevia. One challenge to overcome was the negative taste perception of stevia- containing products launched in Europe since the stevia approval in 2011 – mainly around lingering bitter/liquorish aftertaste. Our NPD teams worked meticulously, and formulations were tested extensively to make sure we launched the best tasting liquids. Our first stevia- containing drink in SBFE was a line extension of Ribena called Very Berry, launched in the UK in 2016. Schweppes formulations followed in 2017, before we launched our MayTea brand in the UK with stevia. Most recently, we launched Lucozade Revive and Ribena Raspberry & Rhubarb concentrate, which multiplied our stevia volumes four times compared with the previous year. We have many ongoing stevia projects this year, which are expected to increase our current volumes by another four-fold.
What’s next?
While the market reality today for all soft drink companies is the dominant use of conventional sweeteners, our ambition is to keep growing exponentially in the area of naturally sweetened drinks, despite the limitations detailed above. We work closely with our colleagues in Japan who do ground-breaking research to discover novel tools and enable the natural revolution we are after in Europe. We expect new natural enablers to become available soon in the EU toolbox, following careful evaluation by EFSA, which will allow us – as well as other companies – to provide consumers with even more revolutionary natural options. ●
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64
