Evolva receives stevia sweetener patent in US

Swiss natural ingredient developer Evolva has received a notice of allowance from the US Patent & Trademark Office, which covers the most commercially viable production method for manufacturing the best-tasting steviol glycosides.

This grant is expected to occur early next year.

The patent is claimed to protect the company’ s production process of rebaudioside A (Reb A), rebaudioside D (Reb D), and rebaudioside M (Reb M), which is produced using different methods such as fermentation and bioconversion.

The company claims that it is the first to identify and characterise the enzymes for key steps in the Reb A, Reb D and Reb M biosynthesis pathways.

In addition to the latest patent, Evolva currently has nearly 69 applications pending worldwide, including ten in the US and five in Europe for the production of steviol glycosides by various methods, including fermentation, bioconversion or in plants.

In May, Evolva received a European patent that enables organisms to express highly attractive pathways for producing steviol glycosides.

Evolva and global food company Cargill have collaborated on the production and commercialisation of stevia sweeteners by fermentation, and are co-developing the next-generation EverSweet stevia sweetener, which is a combination of Reb D and Reb M.

Evolva currently offers ingredients such as stevia, nootkatone and resveratrol.