In a bid to customise its products for Indian companies, leading producer of Stevia sweeteners, PureCircle, has opened its first South Asia lab in India.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India had given its nod to use of Stevia sweetener in food and beverages in the country about two years ago.

Customised products

The company said it was aiming to use this lab to support Indian food and beverage companies as they look at developing lower calorie products for Indian consumers. It is offering a customised range of products that complement the Indian palate, including tailored blends for carbonated drinks, juice drinks, ketchups, powdered drinks, yogurts, flavoured milks and traditional sweets with great taste and deep sugar reduction.

Ajay Chandran, Senior Director and Head of South Asia at PureCircle, said: “To address the rapidly growing consumer demand for naturally-sourced, zero calorie sweeteners, Indian food and beverage manufacturers are turning to Stevia as a viable, plant-based solution. We are receiving increasing requests from food and beverage companies in India to help them formulate Stevia ingredients for their specific needs.”

On the company’s future plans, Chandran added, “We expect several stevia-sweetened products to be launched in the next few months, including several lower calorie/sugar, naturally sweetened carbonated drinks, juice drinks, flavoured milks, even ice creams, kulfi or traditional sweets like gulab jamuns.”

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