Ingredient spotlight: Stevia
Stevia rebaudiana, more commonly known as the stevia plant, naturally produces sweet-tasting compounds. The plant is indigenous to Paraguay, where ‘Caá hê-é’ (or sweet herb) has been used by the Guarani people to sweeten drinks for over a century. Today, stevia is grown in Paraguay, Kenya, China and the US, and its non-caloric and sweetening properties are being used to sweeten many everyday products around the world (1). The sweet taste of stevia Stevia’s unique sweet tasting compounds, steviol glycosides, are produced in the leaves of the stevia plant (1). The structure of these compounds resembles the shape of a glucose molecule and activates the same receptor on our tongue that detects sweetness. Unlike sugar, stevia extracts provide no calories. [...]