Eyeing the fitness-conscious customer base in tier 2-3 towns, Zydus Wellness has introduced SugarFree Stevia, a herbal alternative to sugar, in the Gujarat market.
The company, which sells sugar substitutes under the brand SugarFree, will use imported extract of Stevia plant leaves as sweetener. Test marketing is under way in Gujarat, and the pan-India launch may take place next year.
“Currently, SugarFree Stevia in pellets is available in seven towns of Gujarat. This is test marketing. The traders have been receptive and we are getting positive consumer response. Eventually, we plan to introduce powder and liquid drops of the same,” Elkana Ezekiel, Managing Director, Zydus Wellness, told
The new product has been priced at over 100 per cent premium to the existing SugarFree product of the company.
Having a market share of about 92 per cent of the ₹300-crore sugar substitutes market (at retail price), Zydus is focusing more on fitness-conscious consumers with SugarFree Stevia. Also, it plans to target people with lifestyle diseases, who would prefer natural alternative to sugar.
“Stevia leaves contain natural sweet compounds. It is healthier than the artificial sugar substitutes. Purified leaf extract of Stevia is 200 to 300 times sweeter than sugar in the same concentration,” said Ezekiel. Notably, in 2013, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had approved Stevia to be used as sugar alternative for about 11 product groups that include carbonated drinks, confectionery products, juices among others, informed industry insiders.
“There is an increasing interest for Stevia from Indian industry. It has emerged as a promising sugar alternative. A few companies have already started Stevia cultivation and processing in India,” said Sourabh Agarwal, CEO of India Stevia Association, a trade body of stevia processors and cultivators in India.
Zydus sources the extract of Stevia leaves from global leaders like PureCircle Ltd.
According to Ezekiel, SugarFree vertical would continue to outpace company’s other two verticals of Everyuth and Nutralite.