Food and beverage brands get two more tools for their sugar reduction toolkits as Conagen announced the successful scale-up production of two new high-intensity sweeteners, thaumatin I and thaumatin II. The development will expand commercial partner Sweegen’s robust sugar reduction solutions of zero-sugar natural sweeteners.

MeliBio, Inc., a food-tech company focused on creating real honey without bees, announced a $5.7M Seed round to scale its proprietary technology of precision fermentation and plant science and launch its first line of commercial products. The round is led by Astanor Ventures, with participation of existing and new investors.

Prepared Foods’ David Feder interviews sweetener scientist and research chef Alexa Bosshardt, MS, RDN on the hot trending near-zero-calorie sweetener allulose. Could this natural sugar be the “Holy Grail” of sweeteners?

As pressure to deliver products with reduced sugar mounts, Cargill continues to sweeten its stevia product offerings with widespread commercial availability of its advanced EverSweet™ + ClearFlo™ technology. The new sweetener system brings together the company’s premier stevia sweetener with a natural flavor, a combination that provides wide-ranging benefits that include flavor modification, improved solubility and stability in formulations, and faster dissolution.

Sweegen announced the commercialization of its newest advancement in sweetness: the high-intensity sweetener brazzein. Starting in February 2022, food and beverage brands seeking new ways to create better-for-you and reduced sugar products can begin product development activities with Sweegen’s Ultratia™ brazzein.

The International Stevia Council (ISC) announced that Codex Alimentarius (Codex), the international food standard safety authority, recently adopted the framework for Steviol Glycosides encompassing four different technologies for the production of steviol glycosides.

Allulose is authorized as a food ingredient in many countries worldwide, including Japan, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, and the US. It is also under regulatory evaluation in several other countries and regions. In addition, allulose is FEMA (Flavor Extract Manufacturers Association) GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) for use as a flavoring in beverages and milk products. 

Kerry introduces Tastesense™ Sweet Organic Certified as the first organic-certified sweet modulator for the US beverage marketplace. 

Apura Ingredients, the industry’s leading supplier of highquality, low- and no-calorie sweeteners, is begun partnering with EPC Natural Products Company, which offers integrated sensation optimization through its portfolio of taste and flavor modulators.