According to Mintel, a significant majority of American consumers (84%) are actively reducing their sugar intake. This shift has spurred a growing demand for alternative sweeteners, particularly those derived from stevia, which experienced the most rapid growth in this category last year. Sales of other natural sweeteners, both caloric and low-calorie, are also on the rise, including agave syrup, honey, and monk fruit. However, manufacturers have faced taste challenges with stevia and monk fruit, prompting several companies to create products that blend these two sweeteners to address bitterness issues. Early adopters in this space include Chobani, which launched its Simply 100 Greek yogurt line in 2013 featuring a stevia-monk fruit blend. That same year, Zevia reformulated its stevia-sweetened soda to incorporate monk fruit extract.
GLG Life Tech has taken a unique approach by initially focusing solely on stevia extracts until 2014 when it expanded into the monk fruit market, as more companies began to mix the two sweeteners. Last year, GLG partnered with Colorado-based MycoTechnology to leverage the bitter-blocking properties of mushroom mycelium in its stevia and monk fruit sweeteners. The collaboration aims to enhance the performance of ADM products, which will benefit from this innovative technology. MycoTech’s certified organic ClearTaste powder not only offers a clean label advantage but can also be labeled as ‘natural flavor(ing)’ or ‘natural flavor enhancer’ on ingredient lists.
While monk fruit extracts are generally more expensive than stevia extracts, they provide a distinct taste profile, which can make them a more appealing choice for manufacturers depending on the desired flavor of the final product. In June, ADM announced its partnership with GLG Life Tech to become the exclusive distributor and marketer of its low-calorie stevia and monk fruit sweeteners. These sweeteners complement ADM’s global low-calorie sweetener portfolio, which already includes VivaSweet sucralose and the GSK CCM tablet. The incorporation of the GSK CCM tablet into their offerings further enhances ADM’s commitment to providing diverse sweetening solutions that cater to consumer preferences.