Coca-Cola to Launch Stevia-Sweetened Drinks in Violation of FDA Regulations?

[Antaletriangle]

http://www.naturalnews.com/News_0006...Cola_GRAS.html

The Wall Street Journal is reporting today that Coca-Cola plans to launch a calorie-free, stevia-sweetened drink this week. Why is that news? Because stevia has never been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has kept stevia off the GRAS list of approved food and beverage ingredients for well over a decade (to protect aspartame profits, critics charge).

If Coca-Cola moves ahead with its plan to launch a stevia-sweetened diet drink, it would be doing so in direct violation of FDA regulations that currently prohibit stevia from being used as an ingredient in food and beverages (stevia can only be sold as a "dietary supplement," not as an ingredient in food). This means one of the following must be true:

Possibility #1 - Coca-Cola is working with the FDA, and there will be a surprise announce of stevia's GRAS approval timed to coincide with Coca-Cola's launch of its new stevia-sweetened drinks.

Possibility #2 - Coca-Cola is NOT working with the FDA, and it plans to launch its stevia drink in direct violation of the FDA's rules regarding food and beverage ingredients.

If Possibility #2 is true, then the FDA will be faced with a dilemma: It must either confiscate all of Coca-Cola's stevia drinks or it will lose any remaining credibility as a food and beverage regulator. Why? Because it has threatened smaller stevia companies for years, even confiscating imported stevia products and ordering the destruction of stevia recipe books. If it now allows Coca-Cola to sell stevia drinks even when they are using an illegal ingredient, it would indicate blatant favoritism of large corporations over small ones.

And that would mean the FDA regulations are meaningless. The only thing that matters is the size of your corporation and how much money can be made from the FDA looking the other way. (Sound familiar?)

If Coca-Cola proceeds with the launch of its stevia drinks, this could be a defining moment for the FDA: Will it finally legalize stevia? If not, will it enforce its own GRAS rules, or will it instead allow a powerful corporation to sell "illegal" products that violate FDA regulations?

NaturalNews will keep you updated on this story as it develops. We're hoping to see the FDA make a surprise announcement that stevia is GRAS approved -- a positive development for consumers.


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Coca-Cola to Launch Stevia-Sweetened Drinks in Violation of FDA Regulations?

From Online.wsj.com: Coke, Pepsi and companies they are working with say their sweetener -- called Truvia by Coke and PureVia by Pepsi -- is more highly purified than the versions of stevia used in those tests, and that new data have been submitted to the FDA. Cargill Inc., which teamed up with Coke, and Whole Earth Sweetener Co., which is working with Pepsi, say research they sponsored and submitted to the FDA in May found it to be safe.... more

[avyaktam]

I understood stevia is a 'good' product. Is that correct?

[Dakini]

Coca Cola and Cargill formed a partnership to produce "Truvia" a brand of "Rebiana." Cargill says that Rebiana is a product taken from "crude Stevia." So it seems they are getting around saying that Stevia is the sweetener being used, rather, it is "Rebiana" that is being used - "...rebiana is different from most stevia sold today because it consists of only the best-tasting components of the stevia leaf. It is the first high-purity product of its kind."

"Truvia, a brand jointly owned by the companies, will be sold as a tabletop sweetener starting this year (2008) and used in beverages by Atlanta-based Coca-Cola, Zanna McFerson, business director for Cargill's health and nutrition unit, said Thursday in an interview… "

Cargill is a privately held international provider of food, agricultural and risk management products. Rebiana press from Cargill's news page: Press

What we should be aware of is that Cargill supports bioengineering of crops, so it could be possible that the "natural product, Stevia" would be genetically modified at some point. So anyone drinking Coca Cola softdrinks would be exposed to GMO's. (On Cargill's site, they do say that they will provide non-genetically enhanced products upon request.)

News on the internet also points to the fact that PepsiCo is also jumping on the natural sweetener bandwagon, calling their Stevia product "PureVia."

My understanding is that Coca Cola has exported softdrinks with Stevia to Japan for many years, but due to the FDA's political blockage of Stevia in the U.S., it was not available in the U.S.

Truvia was approved 12/17/08 by the FDA - Read it here.

http://www.allaboutrebiana.com/Rebiana_News.html

Products are also being developed for tabletop sweeteners. Personally, I won't buy any of the products above, but stick to my regular, NON-GMO Stevia sweetener.

Dakini

[deb003]

Originally Posted by avyaktam

I understood stevia is a 'good' product. Is that correct?

I went to a presentation one time to see a doctor speak on the effects of food on your mood.
Stevia came up as the safest product because it doesn't contain aspartame.
Have you tried buying Stevia, which they only sells at Whole Food stores by the way, it's VERY expensive. Regular supermarkets here in South Florida don't even carry it.
Stevia is actually a safer product so it kinda makes me look at coca cola in a new light here. At least some of it.
I hope they do it. I also wonder if those drinks will be more expensive...?

[Dakini]

Deeb...
You can order Stevia online through my webpage for 20% off - I offer this discount to my clients and Avalon members. There is liquid and powder. I like the liquid. I think it starts at about $10 or $11.00. Liquid lasts a long time.

Yes, Stevia is good for you. Considering that sugar beets are being bioengineered, the sugar supply will eventually be poisoned soon if we let it happen. Read more from Mother Earth News....

Blessings, Dakini