Stevia World » Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speakers

Robert Jonsson pinpoints Key Learning Points at Stevia World Europe…

divya — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 09:20:18 +0000

In part 2 of Robert Jonsson’s detailed report of Stevia World Europe, he highlights the key learning points at the conference, and its implications for the Stevia Industry…

1. Predicting Trends in Stevia: Simon Bentley from LMC gave a historical analysis of the life cycle of aspartame and looked into his crystal ball about what that could mean for how the stevia business could possibly unfold. It was an excellent eye opener and put things into realistic perspective for investors and marketing planners alike. As always, the biggest difficulty with forecasting is to predict the future and we can’t relay on that history repeats itself. Mr. Bentley also drew the attention to the very different market environments these two sweeteners are facing upon entry, which further complicates the assessment. Hence forecasting continues to remain a good deal of secret art. In the US market the current slack by HFCS could prove to be a boon for stevia extract in the all important soft drink segment.

2. The Regulatory Status in Europe: From the European Commission Mr. Klepsch clarified how law and order prevails without short cuts in the European Union and the food industry like other sectors simply has to get used to it. It is finally the complicated democratic decision process between European countries, where any opposing country can slow down the decision process, which is ultimately making predictions virtually impossible. The workload at EFSA adds to the unpredictable political delays. By now stevia is however high priority and it is realistic to expect European approval even before September 2011, which is when entire EU by the latest has to take position to stevia approval again.

3. Stevia’s “Water Paradox”: American stevia pioneer Mr. James A. May demonstrated convincingly what 27 years of total dedication to stevia means. Similarly to the German “Reinheitsgebot”- purity law for beer brewing- he is adamant about using only pure water and nothing else for stevia extraction. As in sweetener business “tasting is believing” the absence of bitterness in his extract is really thought provoking, so maybe the world of stevia is facing a “water paradox” in extraction technology.

4. Developing Standardized Methods to measure Steviol Glycosides: The importance of a standardized and validated method for measuring steviol glycosides cannot be enough emphasized according to Dr. Geuns. Kath. Univ. Leuven. He showed convincingly and in detail how important particularly ‘Good Laboratory Practice’ is for obtaining correct and reproducible results. Validated analytical test methods are necessary for the stevia extract business to be credible and achieve long-term success.

5. Clarifying essential terminology to avoid confusion: Both Dr. Geuns and Dr. Horn (Wild Inc.) emphasized the importance of clarity of terminology to avoid creating confusion when communicating about stevia extract and its components. Hopefully industry and its organizations don’t leave it to the creativity of the boulevard press to enlighten consumers in this respect!

6. Status Update on Stevia Quality Assurance Project: Carl Horn af Rantzien updated the audience on The European Stevia Association project status for a quality assurance label. The objective of this initiative is to protect industry and consumers against substandard and adulterated stevia extracts in an effort to build consumers trust in stevia.

7. Updates on Stevia Cultivation in Latin America: Unlike conventional high-intensity sweeteners, stevia is not manufactured in a chemical plant but comes from a cultivated plant. The historical origins of stevia are in Latin America, but like with so many other food ingredients Asia is nowadays the leading agro industrial source. South Americans however seem determined not to leave it at that and are set to recapture their historical role as source of this natural sweetener in modern times. From Misiones Technological Park in Argentina Mr. Galian gave a taste of what is to be expected, which leaves no doubt about that there are excellent opportunities in stevia in this part of the world for serious investors.

8. Agronomic Innovations for Stevia Cultivation: Since the Indian green revolution of the 1970’s this country continues steadily to make advances in plant breeding technology in general. Ms. Suma Krishnaswami from Sun Fruits Ltd. gave an overview of where stevia technology currently stands in the quest for optimization of glycosides content of stevia leaves in the different climatic zones of India. Having the largest number of diabetics in the world, a second green revolution, -this time based on stevia, would be a welcome relief for many Indians.

9. Innovations in Improving Stevia’s Taste Profile: For most things humans consume through the mouth the purchase decisions are made very strongly based on the taste. It is well known that no high-intensity sweetener fully matches the taste profile of the golden standard sugar, which we have been conditioned to already since childhood.

Stevia is no exception in this case, so flavor masking and sweetness enhancing technologies are vital tools for developing the full market potential of stevia extracts. Dr. Greg Horn, Wild Flavors Inc. gave an overview of the art and science of sweetening with stevia. At Wild they have engineered a whole set of tailored tools for a broad variety of applications and stevia grades. These tools help to master the formulation challenges and obtain a taste result closest possible to sugar without adverse labeling requirements. It enables the utilization of lower cost stevia grades, whilst cutting costs for instance in beverages by as much as half.

Dr. Horn also showed how well stevia fits into the prevailing consumer trend and health situation. Health and nutrition is trendy, and consumers are demanding natural products. Overweight and obesity is a global problem and cardiovascular illness and diabetes is rampant. Mothers are concerned about sugar. Market research clearly indicates that a natural, no calorie sweetener is highly appealing to consumers and they are willing to pay more for healthier foods.

Layn Natural Ingredients (LNI) has taken a very promising approach to the taste optimization of stevia extract and we will certainly see a lot more activity along these lines in the future. As explained by Dr Alan Liao, LNI is pursuing the strategy of identifying other natural ingredients to blend with Rebaudioside A, which are able to neutralize its off-notes. After thoroughly screening a short list of over 20 candidates LNI has come to the conclusion that Luo Han Guo (LHG) extract- and juice powder shows the greatest potential in tuning the taste profile of Rebaudioside A closer to sugar. LNI is marketing their optimized, ready to use blends of Rebaudioside A 97%, LHG mogroside V and LHG juice concentrate powder under the Lovia^TM brand. Regulatory permitting, the European market is highly receptive for such natural, health promoting solutions.

10. Stevia’s Strong Presence in Asia: Compared to some other parts of the world, Europe is rather late out with the regulatory approval for the use of stevia. Apart from Latin America where stevia originates, particularly some Asian countries like Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan and Thailand have commonly used stevia already for a long time. Japan is the world’s largest consumer of stevia extract, where it has some 40% of the local sweetener market. Asians are far ahead of us on the marketing learning curve and now we have to turn to them for marketing wisdom.

The foremost pioneer in stevia is considered to be Mr. Toyoshige Morita, president of Morita Kagaku Kogoyo Co. Ltd. (MKK), who has been involved with stevia and stevia extract for over 30 years. Steviol glycosides were first commercialized as a sweetener in 1971 by MKK. With their extraordinary know-how they have meanwhile from the common Bertoni variety developed their own optimized stevia- the “Morita” variety.

In Korea the first stevia was grown in 1973 and leaves started to be exported to Japan in 1977. In 1984 regulatory approval was obtained for stevia extract. Over half of the Korean stevia consumption goes into Soju, a native Korean distilled alcoholic (20-40%) beverage, which is sweetened. This is certainly one of the more exotic large volume applications for stevia, but maybe a forthcoming high growth potential opportunity for the European vodka regions?

In Korea, Daepyung is clearly the leading stevia extract supplier and quite a significant player in the world market as well, as explained by Mr. Kevin Park, who is in charge of the overseas sales and business development. Daepyung also offers an enzymatically modified stevia grade.

11. Final Thoughts and Wrap up from Key Players in the Stevia Industry: The conference finished with a panel discussion featuring Dr. Roger Olivier, Nestlé, Dr. Jean-Luc Gelin, Firmenich and Dr. Mel Jackson VP Science at Sweet Green Fields, USA. The discussion circled around the use of stevia in sugar reduction, taste modulation and the environmentally friendly properties and socially responsible alternative which stevia cultivation offers for farmers in many parts of the world.

In short, stevia is the better sweetener alternative, actively contributing to a better world, which the Stevia World Europe conference amply highlighted in Frankfurt on 18 November.

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Stevia World Europe Conference Chairman Robert Jonsson reports on the Frankfurt conference…

divya — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:30:44 +0000

Robert Jonsson, a partner at Ingredient Marketing International, wrote a detailed report outlining his experience at Stevia World Europe. We are happy to present part 1 of this detailed report, where he outlines the highlights of the conference.

The Stevia World team of the well-known Singapore based conference organizer Centre for Management Technology (CMT) successfully launched the European version of their global Stevia World series of conferences to the food & beverage industry on November 18 in Frankfurt.

The event was a runaway success with delegates participating from not only Europe, but also virtually all parts of the world, demonstrating the attraction of the Stevia World Europe program and the immense interest in this emerging high-intensity sweetener.

After four GRAS approvals in the US early this year stevia extract has already captured 11% of the US tabletop market within the same number of months after FDA approval. This is a breathtaking pace of market penetration by any historical standards in such a competitive market segment. Should this soon repeat itself in other segments of the market, stevia extract is set to open a new chapter in the world of high intensity sweeteners. Consumers and industry alike are quickly recognizing stevia extract as being the missing link in the sweetener world between zero calories, taste and naturalness.

In Frankfurt Stevia World Europe’s comprehensive program provided delegates with a profound insight into the features and benefits of stevia extract within a one-day time frame. High caliber speakers from all over the world managed to bring a complex message across with simplicity and clarity without being superficial.

Conference chairman Mr. Angus Flood, Head Intl. Marketing at Pure Circle in his legendary freewheeling style managed to give the event an easygoing and relaxed atmosphere despite the seriousness of the topics.

The conference was honored by the presence of the three global stevia pioneers known by insiders as the “Asian Father of Stevia” Mr. Toyoshige Morita, the “American Father of Stevia” Mr. James A. May and the “European Father of Stevia” Dr. Jan Geuns.

If there would be a “Son of Stevia”, the title doubtless would to go to conference panelist Mr. Joel Perret of the GreenSweet Company who thanks to his incredible tenacity and optimism has recently prompted the French AFFSA authorities to approve stevia extract as a high-intensity sweetener. Considering the hurdles involved, this is a monumental achievement and pivotal for the advancement of stevia to finally obtain the long awaited and much deserved European wide approval.

Mr. Perret’s admirable capability in explaining complicated matters in a simple way must apparently have had a convincing effect even on French regulators. During this conference he skillfully demonstrated his art by uncovering the secrets of stevia extraction to the audience in 30 minutes.

The conference program which was tailored for the European audience provided delegates with answers to “all you wanted to know about stevia, but never had anybody to ask”. It covered market analysis, regulatory, product quality, cultivation, flavor masking & sweetness enhancement and Asian marketing experiences.

It closed with a panel discussion about the future of stevia, featuring executives from Nestlé, Firmenich, PureCircle, Sweet Green Fields and Wisdom Natural Brands.

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Speaker Profile: James A May, President & CEO, Wisdom Natural Brands (SweetLeaf)

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:53:42 +0000

James A. May is the founder, President and CEO of Wisdom Natural Brands®, producer of SweetLeaf® brand products, Sweet & Slender® natural sweetener, Wisdom of the Ancients® herbal teas. Originally learning from the natives of Paraguay, he is now a recognized authority on several South American herbs. He introduced stevia, YerbaMaté and other health generating herbal products to the U.S. in 1982 and is considered one of the world’s foremost authorities on these herbs. SweetLeaf® brand Stevia products are the clear category leader in the USA.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
10:15 27 Years with Sweet, Healing, Stevia

Stevia World Europe 2009 in Frankfurt is a showcase of the who’s who in Stevia sector, including top stevia growers, refiners, traders, key stevia organisations, government officials, scientists and investors who will highlight Upcoming opportunities, Pinpoints Regulatory Challenges & Shares Market Updates. To find more about Stevia World Europe in Frankfurt on November 18, 2009, please visit http://www.steviaworldforum.com

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Speaker Profile: Dr. Greg Horn, Senior Director Technical Services, WILD Flavors Inc

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:47:52 +0000

Greg Horn has been in the beverage industry for over 20 years. He recently accepted a new position at WILD Flavors, Inc. as the Senior Director, Sweetener Technology to manage the commercialization and application of stevia and taste modifiers for high intensity sweetners.Prior to that, Greg was the Senior Director of Technology and Innovation at WILD Flavors where his primary roles were to investigate the benefits, application and commercialization of novel health ingredients, natural colors, and specialty ingredients. Greg previously worked for Pepsi Cola managing the development and national rollout of several new initiatives.

He has presented numerous papers on product development, trends in the beverage industry and new innovations. Greg is serving as the Vice Chairperson of the Non-Traditional Beverage Committee in the International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT).

Greg received his Masters in Food Science from University of California- Davis, a Masters in Management from New York Universuty, and a Bachelors in Food Science from Rutgers University.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
14:30 The Art & Science of Stevia Sweetening

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Speaker Profile: Konstantinos Karayiannis, Assistant Manager & Coordinator, Morita Kagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:43:51 +0000

Konstantinos Karayiannis works at the overseas department of Morita Kagaku Kogyo, where he is in charge of overseas sales, business development as well as communication & coordination issues related to the overseas operations.

After graduating the Business & Administration Faculty of Piraeus University in Greece, he moved to Japan where he completed his post-graduate studies in Business at Shiga University and the PhD curriculum on Management Organization at Kyoto University.

He currently lives and works in Japan.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
16:00 Stevia characteristics and potential for new applications- Sharing Morita’s 30 years of experience

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Speaker Profile: Dr. Jingjun Liao, CEO, Guilin Layn Natural Ingredients Corp

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:39:07 +0000

Dr. Jingjun Liao is the Board Director and CEO of Guilin Layn Natural Ingredients Corp, member of China National High-Tech food development council. Before Joining Layn, 8 years working experience in P&G as food senior scientist and external business development manager. Graduated from Peking University, subjecting in biochemistry, expert in photochemistry, human nutrition, and intelligence properties.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
15:30 Formulating Beverage Compositions with Stevia and Another Natural Ingredient

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Speaker Profile: Carlos Galian, Executive Director – Misiones Technological Park, Biofabrica Misiones

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:14:26 +0000

Carlos Galian from Argentina is currently the Executive Officer Misiones Technological Park. He obtained his degree in Chemical Engineer- School of Exact, Chemical and Natural Sciences from the Universidad Nacional de Misiones and is now the Dean for that division in the university

In his capacity as Executive Director of the Misiones Technological Park, Carlos is responsible for inviting technology co-operation and transfer of knowledge from investors.

Carlos has published many scientific publications and spoke at numerous conferences on Science, technology and productive innovation

He is representing Biofabrica in Stevia World Europe to talk about the company’s stevia propagation & cultivation techniques with the potential to supply to the European market

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
13:35 Cultivation Experience and Supplying to the European Market

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Speaker Profile: Robert Jonsson, Partner, Ingredient Marketing International

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:10:10 +0000

Robert Jonsson has an educational background with degrees in chemistry and marketing. He has mainly been working for American multinationals like Rohm & Haas, Dow Chemical and NutraSweet in Europe, followed by Ajinomoto, before lately starting his own consulting firm. During the last 20 and more years he has been involved with the market development of modern high-intensity sweeteners focusing on Europe.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
13:30 Chairman for Afternoon Session

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Speaker Profile: Carl Horn af Rantzien, Director, Regulatory Affairs, European Stevia Association (EUSTAS)

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:01:22 +0000

Carl Horn is the Head of Regulatory Affairs at EUSTAS, the European Stevia Association. he is also the founder and President of Granular, the Sweden-based European stevia producer.

Carl has been serving as an advisor to various companies in the financial sector and has been serving as a liaison and advisor to a number of public companies in the health care, environmental and electronics industries in the United States. In addition, he is an advisor to a number of private companies.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
11:30 Quality Assurance Label to Ensure Highest Stevia Quality and Product Integrity

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Speaker Profile: Dr. Jan M.C. GEUNS, President of EUSTAS, Lab. Functional Biology KULeuven

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:56:16 +0000

Jan M.C. GEUNS studied biology at the KULeuven and is Professor of plant physiology and head of the Laboratory of Functional Biology. His research interest is natural product biochemistry. Since 1993 his research focuses on the biosynthesis of sweeteners in Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni as well as on toxicological studies in animals. He is one of the co-founders of the European Stevia Association (EUSTAS).

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
11:10 Importance of A Standardised and Validated Method for Measuring Steviol Glycosides

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Speaker Profile: Dr. Joël Perret, CEO, Greensweet Sas

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:49:22 +0000

Joël Perret got his Science Doctorate from Paris VI University in Natural Sciences with a specialization in Molecular Biology. His professional experience started in fundamental research in Life Sciences and Genetic Engineering, then evolved to applied Research and Development and finally in Industrial and Supply Chain Management among different multinational companies (Limagrain, Danone, Best foods, Unilever). He created the company GREENSWEET beginning of 2006 to develop and sell Stevia and Stevia products. From this date he has developed a strong know how on this plant and its derivatives.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
10:45 Stevia Extraction Technologies

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Speaker Profile: Andreas Klepsch, Head of Novel Foods Unit DG Sanco, European Commission

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:41:34 +0000

1982 University of Frankfurt/Main = Degree Diplombiologe
1982 – 1987 Deputy Head of Unit at Hessische Landesanstalt für Tierzucht
1987 – 1997 Scientific officer, European Commission several RtD programmes (Biotechnology and Human Genome Anlysis)
since 1998 Administrator in the Unit responsible for food law; today principle administrator, repsonsible for the implementation of the Novel Food Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 258/97

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
09:20 Current Authorisation Process of Steviol Glycosides in EU

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Speaker Profile: Simon Bentley, Head of Grains Research, LMC International Ltd

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:33:59 +0000

Simon Bentley is a Director of LMC and heads the company’s research into grains and grain processing. This encompasses markets for intense sweeteners such as Stevia, which compete within the broader market for caloric sweeteners.

Mr Bentley’s area of expertise includes many aspects of the food processing industry, and he has undertaken numerous projects investigating the competitiveness and market potential for different types of sweeteners across several regional markets. He has an in-depth understanding of world carbohydrate markets and the role sweeteners play in these.

He is a graduate of Trinity College, Oxford University, and the London School of Economics.

Stevia World Europe 2009 Frankfurt Speaker
Day 1 – Wednesday, November 18
09:00 Stevia’s Breakthrough and Its Effect on the Global Sweetener Market Outlook

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