Canada approves steviol glycosides for a variety of foods

Health Canada has released a revised list of permitted sweeteners, approving the use of steviol glycosides from brewer's yeast Y63348 in a variety of food products. It is understood that steviol glycosides from the plant stevia, brewer's yeast CD15380 and brewer's yeast CD15407 are already allowed in Canada for use in a variety of foods.

Currently, the International Codex Alimentarius Commission, the European Commission, and Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare have allowed steviol glycosides to be used as sweeteners in a variety of foods. The acceptable daily intake (ADI) for steviol glycoside is 4 mg/kg body weight (in steviol equivalents), as assessed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA). In China, steviol glycoside as a food additive has been listed in the National Standard for Food Safety and Food Additive Use (GB 2760), which allows it to be used in food categories such as candied fruits, confectionery and pastry. On the basis of GB 2760-2014, steviol glycoside has been approved twice to expand its application scope in 2017 and 2020.

The analysis suggests that the opportunity is ripe for stevioside, whether in beverages, snacks, soy products or confectionery, and with suppliers improving the taste of stevioside, it is believed that there will be more room for stevioside to grow in the future.