The non-exclusive agreement is for an initial three-year period but could be extended, GLG said. The company added that the deal could expand geographically to include other countries within South America.
Chairman and CEO of GLG Dr. Luke Zhang said: “Brazil and Argentina represent a significant market opportunity for the expansion of GLG’s natural sweetener solutions. These countries have had a history of using stevia, however, the taste of the typical lower grade stevia extracts available has impacted the wider use of the sweetener by the food and beverage industry…The combination of GLG’s strengths in the development, production of high grade stevia extracts, and M Cassab’s strength in distribution, formulation and customer service creates significant potential for the use of stevia-based sweetener solutions in these markets.”