Stevia expert PureCircle posts much-reduced net loss ($1.9m) in H1, 2014; Sales surge 32% to $34.9m

19-Mar-2014 - Last updated on 19-Mar-2014 at 15:58 GMT

Leading stevia supplier PureCircle posted a (much reduced) net loss of $1.9m in the six months to Dec 31, 2013, while sales surged 32% to $34.9m over the same period. (In the same period in 2012, net losses were $6.9m.)

PureCircle has been working on several new stevia products including Reb D, which is claimed to have “one of the best sweetness profiles of any steviol glycoside”; and Reb M, a naturally occurring glycoside it has been developing with Coca-Cola that is claimed to have “a closer taste to sugar than stevia ingredients commercialized to date, allowing deeper calorie reductions in food and beverage products, particularly those with higher levels of sweetness, such as CSDs”.

The FDA has issued ‘No Objection’ letters to PureCircle’s GRAS determination for both glycosides.

In an update with its interim results today, PureCircle said: “Global food and beverage usage of PureCircle's Stevia 3.0 ingredient range continues to accelerate with the first half of 2014 (H1) again witnessing food and beverage launches in new categories and regions.”

In 2011, PureCircle had a single high purity stevia product in market; by the end of 2013, it had 12, with more due to be launched in 2014, said the firm. “Market experience shows that each new launch increases overall market usage of high purity stevia as well as PureCircle's market share.”

Group CEO Magomet Malsagov said: “In 1H FY14 we continued on our path of delivering sales growth leading to improvements in profitability.”