Stevia Closer To Sweetening U.S. Food, Drinks

ATLANTA─ Researchers in Georgia are reporting an advance toward the possible use of a Stevia in soft drinks and other food products in the United States.

The study, published in the October 8 issue of Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, found that stevia sweeteners, derived from a South American plant, have been popular for years as a food and beverage additive in Latin America and Asia. But several factors have prevented its use as a sweetener in Europe and the United States. Those include concerns about safety and hints that exposure to sunlight degrades one of the key components of stevia.

The new research eases concerns about stevia's stability, the scientists studied clear glass containers of cola and lemon-lime sodas containing the two major naturally sweet components in stevia. After exposing the beverages to sunlight for one week, they found no significant degradation in either component of the natural sweetener.