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Ray Health launches PureCircle Stevia-powered zero-sugar Indian sweets
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Friday, 22 March, 2019, 14 : 00 PM [IST]
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Our Bureau, New Delhi
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Ray Health, a part of LB Consumer Goods Pvt Ltd, a prominent FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) manufacturer in the country, launched stevia-powered zero-sugar Indian traditional sweets, including Soan Papdi, Rasagullas and Gulab Jamun, in the country for Holi. PureCircle, the world’s leading manufacturer and innovator of stevia sweetener, has powered the development of these products.
PureCircle, the world’s leading manufacturer and innovator of stevia sweetener for the global food and beverage industry, revealed that 2019 was going to witness a new trend of stevia-sweetened food and beverage launches in the country.
Due to the rising graph of obesity, diabetes and other health risks associated with consumption of excess sugar has made a huge shift in the consumer demand. Consumers are increasingly opting for no sugar and natural sugar variants of their favourite sweets, specially during the festive time.
Working closely with established as well as emerging F&B brands in India, PureCircle sees this trend catching up in a big way in the country.
Festivities in India are about sharing sweetness. Ray Health and PureCircle promise to keep the sweetness in the festivities, but eliminate the calories which come with them using stevia.
Stevia is extracted from plant leaf and is 400 times sweeter than regular sugar. Yet, it has no effect on the blood sugar. Unlike artificial sweeteners, stevia is completely safe for consumption and has no side effects.
PureCircle’s research studies have shown that when used in sugar-reduced food and beverages versus full-sugar/calorie products to displace carbohydrates, high-purity stevia leaf extract can help reduce blood glucose as well as energy consumption.
Plant-based, zero-calorie stevia can be part of a well-balanced diet to help reduce energy intake without sacrificing taste. From kids to adults, and from diabetics to non-diabetics, PureCircle high-purity stevia sweetener can be consumed by every member of the family, and offers great taste.
Speaking about this path-breaking innovation in Indian sweets, Shyamal Panchmatia, managing director, Ray Health, said, “For Indians, festivities means sharing sweetness and Indian sweets are closest to our heart and tradition.”
 “But there is always concern for the health and wellness of our loved ones. Keeping in this mind, we engaged with PureCircle to develop Indian sweets which have the taste which is close to our heart, but does not add on excess sugar. We hope to expand our range of Indian sweets with stevia in the coming months, and offer more healthy options for our consumers,” he added.
Sharing the consumer insights prevalent in Indian food and beverage sector, Navneet Singh, vice-president and head, South-East Asia region, PureCircle Ltd, said, “Today, the Indian consumer is strongly inclined to natural solutions that improve health and wellness.”
“Based on our consumer insights, we find consumers are trying to walk away from sugar, but they do not want artificial sweeteners like sucralose and aspartame in their diet. So, the choice for a natural zero-calorie sweetener is really appealing to consumers trying to balance calories with ingredients that they understand and are from nature,” he added.
Singh said, “Indian sweets are one of the biggest F&B category in the country and developing these traditional recipes with stevia to eliminate or reduce sugar qualities is the start of a revolution.”
“This season, while you add color to your lives, we are adding sweetness to your lives, the guilt-free way,” he added.
“Imagine a scenario where we do not have to shy away from gifting a box of rasgulla, gulab jamun or soan papdi on Holi because it has no sugar. Stevia has made this possible. Innovative brands like Ray are the first to understand and embrace this idea, which is a building trend,” Singh said.
In India, both big and small companies are working towards developing products which have lesser sugar or no sugar, and PureCircle is witnessing a huge amount of enquiries and product development going on in variety of products, ranging from juices, carbonates, powder drinks, table-tops, yoghurts and milks to condiments (chutneys, ketchups, etc.) and traditional sweets.
The company is seeking a huge demand from up-start brands as well as established brands trying to reformulate into less caloric products. PureCircle has customised its range of products to suit the Indian palate.
PureCircle aims to cut down 250 billion calories from the Indian diet by 2020. The company has provided enough stevia to eliminate 1.3 trillion calories from global diets. From the seed to the leaf to the sweetener, PureCircle is nurturing taste breakthroughs through every step of the stevia journey.
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