FDA Gives Stevia Green Light to Cargill, Merisant

(MoneyWatch)  It's official -- stevia is "generally regarded as safe." Cargill and Merisant both received letters yesterday from the Food and Drug Administration affirming that the companies' competing stevia-based sweeteners have the agency's approval.

Now we'll find out if the natural, zero-calorie sweetener can live up to its lavish promises. Stevia has been called the "holy grail" of sweeteners, and PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi said its release could halt the decline in soda sales. Paul Block, Merisant's CEO, told the Chicago Tribune that stevia products will be "the lion's share of our business going forward."

A good-tasting stevia-based cola still eludes scientists, but apparently the sweetener works well in citrus drinks. Coca-Cola will launch Sprite Green, using Cargill's brand of stevia-based sweetener, Truvia. Pepsi's stevia products, including three flavors of SoBe Lifewater and a new orange juice drink, will rely on the competing PureVia brand, made by Whole Earth Sweetener, a division of Merisant.

Coke actually got sick of waiting for FDA approval, announcing a few days ago that the company would go ahead with its stevia-based product launch and just hope for the best. Pepsi chose the cautious route and decided to wait. Now it looks like the Coke and Pepsi products will go on sale around the same time. Truvia has been available as a tabletop sweetener for several months, while PureVia is just beginning to hit the shelves.

Stevia is a South American shrub which has been used natively for more than two centuries. But Cargill was careful to point out in its press release that not all stevia is created equal. There are more than 200 varieties of the plant, and products derived from it can "vary in their production, composition, purity level and sensory or taste characteristics."

In other words, Cargill means to say, Truvia is far superior to PureVia. Let the competition begin.