Use of Stevia rebaudiana sweeteners in Japan

Worldwide, the most widespread use of Stevia rebaudiana sweeteners is in Japan. The leaves of S. rebaudiana contain several sweet ent-kaurene glycosides inclusive of stevioside, rebaudiosides A, C, D, and E, and dulcoside A, as shown in Figure 9.1 (Mosettig et al. 1963; Kohda et al. 1976; Sakamoto et al. 1977a; 1977b; Kobayashi et al. 1977). Since the latter half of the 1970s, extracts of the leaves of S. rebaudiana have been employed as sweetening agents, taste modifiers, and sugar substitutes in the food industry in Japan, and have been making slow but steady progress in their utilization and distribution. In Japan, sweettasting products from S. rebaudiana leaves are called simply ‘stevia sweeteners’ and have been commercialized in three basic forms: (i) ‘stevia extract’; (ii) ‘sugar-transferred stevia extract’; and (iii) ‘rebaudioside A-enriched stevia extract’, which have been used in a variety of foods and beverages. This chapter deals with the practical use of stevia sweeteners in Japan, referring to their developmental background and sweetening properties relative to progress made in these uses. Information published previously in the English language concerning this subject may be obtained from reviews by Bakal and O’Brien Nabors (1985) and Kinghorn and Soejarto (1985).