USP sets stevia standard
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
The U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention posts a final monograph for the stevia-based sweetener rebaudioside A, which is available for comment on USP's Food Chemicals Codex forum until March 31. Rebaudioside A is in Cargill's Truvia and Merisant's PureVia (1"The Tan Sheet" Dec. 22, 2008, p. 8). A USP official says Jan. 6 that one of the companies submitted the "straw man" monograph, likely because of determinations of rebaudioside A's safety (2"The Tan Sheet" Nov. 3, 2008, p. 7). The proposed standard assures that rebaudioside A is high quality, free of contaminants and consistent. USP intends to publish the monograph in the 2009 FCC supplement