Extracted from the Stevia Rebaudiana plant, stevia is a natural sweetener with a very low glycemic index. Therefore, it does not increase the level of blood sugar and hence, it can be consumed by diabetic patients as well. The sweetness of stevia is due to the presence of rebaudioside-A and stevioside. Stevia is known to be 200 times sweeter than sugar and additionally, it does not have any side effects. In fact, stevia is known to have several health benefits and is also non-carcinogenic.
The global stevia market is expected to reach USD 553.7 million by 2024, by growing at a CAGR of 6.1%. The market will be mainly driven by the rising demand for low-calorie natural sweeteners due to increasing health consciousness among consumers. Stevia is a natural sweetener that does not have any side effects, but have many health benefits. This has increased the demand for stevia across the globe.
The demand for sugar alternatives like stevia is increasing as the number of obese and diabetic people is rising. As a result, people are increasingly monitoring their sugar intake. Therefore, the demand for natural low-calorie sweeteners like stevia is increasing across the world.
The global stevia market was dominated by the Asia-Pacific region in 2018. The Asia-Pacific stevia market is expected to grow at a high CAGR in the coming years as well, as it is the world’s largest stevia consuming region. The growing food & beverage sector in the Asia-Pacific region will drive the growth of the stevia market.
China and India are going to lead stevia production in the Asia-Pacific region. At present, China is holding a leading position in the world in terms of export and production capacity of stevia. North America is also going to play an important role in the growth of the stevia market. The US accounts for the highest stevia consumption in the North America region.
In EU (European Union), the use of stevia extract was approved in November 2011, due to which the consumption of stevia in Europe is comparatively low. So, the global stevia market will be dominated by Asia Pacific and North America in the near future.
Some major players operating in the global stevia market are, Stevia Corp., The Coca-Cola Company, Cargill Inc., PureCircle Ltd., Nestle S.A., GLG Life Tech Corp, Evolva Holding S.A., PepsiCo Inc., Ingredion, Inc., Archer Daniels Midland Company, Sunwin Stevia International, Inc., and Tate & Lyle plc.
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