Low-Calorie Plant-Based Sweeteners: Stevia, Monk Fruit Extract, Thaumatin

Low-calorie plant-based sweeteners are becoming increasingly popular as people look for healthier alternatives to traditional sugar. These sweeteners are derived from plants and have a lower calorie content than sugar, making them an excellent option for those trying to reduce their calorie intake.

3 Popular Low-Calorie Sweeteners

Stevia, monkfruit extract, and thaumatin are some of the most popular plant-based, low-calorie sweeteners. Let’s look at why each of these sweeteners is commonly used in the food industry. 

Stevia

Stevia is a natural sweetener derived from the leaves of the Stevia rebaudiana plant, which is native to South America. It is significantly sweeter than sugar but contains zero calories and has a negligible effect on blood sugar levels. For this reason, it is ideal for people with diabetes and those looking to reduce their caloric intake and sugar. The leaves of stevia are about 30 times sweeter than sugar, whereas the compounds called steviol glycosides isolated from the leaves of stevia are 200-300 times sweeter. Stevia is available in various forms, including liquid extracts, powdered extracts, and granulated blends, and is used to sweeten a wide range of foods and beverages. 

Monk Fruit Extract

Monk fruit, also known as Luo Han Guo, is a natural sweetener derived from the monk fruit plant (Siraitia grosvenorii). It has been used for centuries in traditional Chinese medicine for its beneficial properties for human health and as a natural sweetener. It is about 150-200 times sweeter than sugar. Monk fruit extract is becoming increasingly popular as a sugar substitute due to its zero-calorie content and low glycemic index. It is also a good choice for individuals looking to reduce their sugar intake or manage their blood sugar levels.

Thaumatin

Thaumatin is a natural protein-based sweetener derived from the fruit of the Thaumatococcus daniellii plant, which is native to West Africa. The fruit is also known as Katemfe fruit. Thaumatin is intensely sweet, 2,000-3,000 times sweeter than sugar. Thaumatin has been used as a sweetener and flavor enhancer in various food and beverage products. One of the main advantages of thaumatin is its natural origin.

Production of Stevia, Monk Fruit, and Thaumatin

Sweetener	Production Process
Stevia	Steviol glycosides are most commonly obtained from dried leaves of S. rebaudiana by aqueous extraction or using an organic solvent or water-organic solvent mixture to precipitate high molecular weight substances (sometimes combined with a defatting step). This is followed by decolorization, purification, concentration, and drying. Other extraction methods used for steviol glycosides include pressurized hot water extraction, microwave-assisted extraction, ultrasonic-assisted extraction, and supercritical fluid extraction.
Monk Fruit Extract	Aqueous extracts of mogrosides are traditionally used for extraction. Alternatively, a mixture of water and organic solvents can also be used, especially for mogrosides with fewer glucose molecules (comparatively lower polarity). Flash extraction is another method for obtaining mogrosides compared to ultrasonic and microwave extraction. Methods including supercritical fluid extraction, column adsorption, and microporous resins have also been used for extraction.
Thaumatin	Thaumatin can be extracted from the arils or fruit by aqueous extraction. Generally, water or an aqueous buffer is used. Protein thaumatin can be purified from the extract using ammonium sulphate precipitation and gel filtration. Dialysis and column chromatography can also be utilized. Recent studies also show biobased production of the recombinant thaumatin protein.

Typical Properties

Property	Stevia	Monkfruit Extract	Thaumatin
Solubility	Soluble in water	Soluble in water	Soluble (600 g/L)
Molecular Weight	Varies as per the glucoside	Varies as per the glucoside	~22,000
Color	White	Golden to deep yellow	Cream color
Odor	Slightly unpleasant smell	Characteristic	Odorless

Applications in the Food Industry

Stevia, monk fruit extract, and thaumatin are commonly used as sweeteners in a variety of product categories, including beverages, baking, dairy products, sauces and dressings, condiments and spreads, snacks and confectionery, breakfast cereals, flavored water, meal replacements and protein shakes, baby food and children’s products, and dietary supplements.

They are primarily used for sweetening and flavor enhancement, as described in the table below.

Function	Description
Sweetener	The sweetening function of stevia, monk fruit extract, and thaumatin contributes a sweet flavor without adding significant calories to the food. They can be used as a standalone sweetener or in combination with other sweeteners to achieve the desired level of sweetness and flavor.
Flavor Enhancer	Stevia, monk fruit extract, and thaumatin have a clean, pleasant taste and can enhance the natural flavors of ingredients in a product. They can help to balance and round out the flavors, making the food taste more appealing and enjoyable.

Sweetness Principles

When formulating products with stevia, monk fruit, and thaumatin, it’s important to understand how their sweetness levels impact the final product. 

Stevia’s Sweetness Potency

The leaves of stevia are about 30 times sweeter than sugar. In contrast, the compounds called steviol glycosides isolated from the leaves of stevia are potently sweet diterpenoid glycosides, which are 200-300 times sweeter than sugar. There are 11 major steviol glycosides, as shown in the table below, of which rebaudioside A and stevioside are the most abundant.

Sweetener	R1	R2	Molecular Formula	Molecular Weight	Sweetness Potency compared to Sucrose
Rebaudioside A	Glcßl-	Glcß(l -2)[G1cß(1-3)]G1cß1-	C44H70O23	967.01	200
Rebaudioside B	H	Glcß(1-2)[G1cß(1-3)]G1cß1-	C38H60O18	804.88	150
Rebaudioside C	Glcßl-	Rhaa(1-2)[G1cß(1-3)]G1cß1-	C44H70O22	951.01	30
Rebaudioside D	Glcß(l -2)G1cß1-	Glcß(1-2)[G1cß(1-3)]G1cß1-	C50H80O28	1129.15	221
Rebaudioside E	Glcß(l-2)G1cß1-	Glcß(1-2)G1cß1-	C44H70O23	967.01	174
Rebaudioside F	Glcßl-	Xylß(1-2)[G1cß(1-3)]G1cß1-	C43H68O22	936.99	200
Stevioside	Glcßl-	Glcß(1-2)G1cß1-	C38H60O18	804.88	210
Steviolbioside	H	Glcß(1-2)G1cß1-	C32H 50O13	642.73	90
Rubusoside	Glcßl-	Glcßl-	C32H50O13	642.73	114
Dulcoside A	Glcßl-	Rhao(1-2)G1cß1-	C38H60O17	788.87	30

Glycosylated Steviol Glycosides

Glycosylated steviol glycosides (GSG) are a mixture of larger glycosides of steviol derived by glycosylation of steviol glycosides. Naturally occurring steviol glycosides, such as stevioside and rebaudioside A, can be modified by allowing an alpha-glucosyltransferase to react on an aqueous solution containing one or more steviol glycosides and a glucose donor, such as starch or cyclodextrin, whereby one or more glucose units are transferred from the glucose donor to the steviol glycoside. 

The reaction products can have a modified/improved sensory experience. For example, rebaudioside A, which has a bitter taste, aftertaste, and astringency, can be modified to reduce these undesirable qualities.

Monk Fruit Extract’s Sweetness Potency

Saccharides and polyols constitute only 2.4% (w/w) in the S. grosvenorii dried fruit. The sweetness in monk fruit is not merely due to the actual sugar or polyol content of the ripened fruit but also to other sweetening components that are present. Triterpene glycosides, called mogrosides, in monk fruit, are the compounds of interest and responsible for the potent sweetness of its extract. 

Mogrosides

Mogrosides are a group of cucurbitane-type triterpene glycosides and are the major bioactive compounds in monk fruit. They are present at ~1% w/w (db) in the fruit’s flesh. The non-sugar component (aglycone moiety) of mogrosides is mogrol. Glycosidic bonds are formed at C-3 and C-24 positions, each with a P configuration. 

While there are more than 60 known mogroside compounds, only 11-α-hydroxy-mogrosides exhibit a sweetening effect. The other triterpenoids are non-sweet or bitter-tasting. Mogroside IV, V and VI, and siamenoside I and 11-oxo-mogroside V, are considered to be mainly responsible for the strong sweetening properties of monk fruit. A novel iso-mogroside V has been identified as having a high potency sweetness (500 times sweeter than sucrose). The mixture of mogrosides is ~300 times sweeter than sucrose. The molecular formula and sweetness properties of widely studied major and minor cucurbitane glycosides are presented in the table below.

Sweet Glycoside	Chemical Formula	Concentration in Fruit (mg/100 g fruit)	Sweetness Potency in Comparison to 5% Sucrose Solution
Mogroside IV	C54H92024*H20		392 times sweeter
Mogroside V	C60H102029*2H20	135.7	425 times sweeter
Mogroside VI	C66H112034		Less sweet than Mogroside V
Siamenoside I	C54H92024*7/2H20	4.5	563 times sweeter
11 -oxo- mogroside V	C60H100029*7/2H20	18.3	Organoleptically sweet
Mogroside II E	C42H82019	45.85	Tasteless
Mogroside III	C48H82019	20.25	Tasteless
Mogroside III E	C48H82019		Tasteless
Mogroside A	C42H92014*3H20		–
Neomogroside	C66H112034*5H20		–
Mogroester	C44H9204		–
Grosmomoside I	C54H92024		–

Mogroside V is the principal sweet triterpene glycoside. The content of mogroside V varies in the range of 0.81-1.29 % (w/w) in the fruit. The highest levels of mogroside V are found in the fruit’s endocarp compared to leaves and peels. Mogroside V is a polar compound containing five glucose residues readily soluble in water. The chemical structure of mogroside V is given below. 

Source: Wikipedia

Thaumatin’s Sweetness Potency

Thaumatin is a group of intensely sweet basic proteins isolated from the fruit of Thaumatococcus danielli. Thaumatin-like proteins (TLPs) fall under the pathogenesis-related 5 (PR5) superfamily and are induced in response to various abiotic and biotic stresses. Thaumatin consists of the proteins Thaumatin I and Thaumatin II and a few other minor components. Thaumatin is a taste-modifying protein that functions as a natural sweetener or flavor enhancer. Thaumatins are nearly 100,000 times sweeter than sucrose on a molar basis and about 1,600 times sweeter on a weight basis. 

Thaumatin I

Thaumatin is a 22 kDa sweet protein isolated from the katemfe fruit’s arils. It is a basic protein with an isoelectric point of approximately 12. The amino acid sequence of thaumatin I consists of a single chain of 207 amino acid residues, and neither carbohydrates nor unusual/modified amino acids are contained in the molecule. The complete amino-acid sequence of the sweet protein thaumatin I can be found here. Given below is a ribbon diagram of the thaumatin protein. 

Source: Wikipedia

Modified Thaumatin Protein

Modification of thaumatin protein through lysine, arginine, aspartic acid, and glutamic acid residues, by acetylation, methylation, or other processes can bring out changes in the chemical and sensorial properties of thaumatin. Modification can cause a change in the overall charge on the protein and the isoelectric point. This can result in a decrease or increase in the sweetness potential of that protein. The total net charge of thaumatin might play a role in eliciting sweetness. 

Usage as Sugar Substitute

Using stevia, monk fruit, or thaumatin as a sugar substitute requires understanding the sweetener’s taste and flavor profile mechanism.

Mechanism of Taste

The receptor that accounts for the sweet taste of all sweet molecules, from sugars to sweet proteins, is a metabotropic G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), composed of T1R2 and T1R3.  T1R2 and T1R3 belong to the class C GPCR subunits. Here’s how stevia, monk fruit extract, and thaumatin compare in terms of their mechanism of taste.

Stevia	Monkfruit Extract	Thaumatin
A study found that the interaction of the carbon molecules at positions C-13 and C-19 of the steviol backbone in a particular steviol glycoside with a specific set of active docking sites on T1R2 & T1R3 was responsible for producing its characteristic taste.Various glycosyl units at C-13 or C-19 position of SGs have been introduced via chemical and enzymatic modification.	In a study, the binding site of mogroside V (MogV) was predicted to be at the R2 site of the venus flytrap domains of the TAS1R2/1R3 heterodimers.	Thaumatin forms a complex with the T1R2-T1R3 sweet receptors. Positively charged residues critical for sweetness, including two important residues, Arg82 and Lys67, were found close to a receptor residue of opposite charge to yield optimal electrostatic interaction.

Sweetness & Flavor Profile

Non-caloric sweeteners differ in taste from carbohydrate sweeteners in several ways. They are more potent, enabling them to be used at significantly lower concentrations. In addition, many exhibit “off” tastes such as bitter, metallic, cooling, or licorice-like flavors. Also, compared to carbohydrate sweeteners, nearly all exhibit sweetness that is slower in onset and lingers longer. The following table describes the sweetness and flavor profiles of stevia, monk fruit extract, and thaumatin.

Property	Stevia	Monk Fruit Extract	Thaumatin
Sweetness Potency	At 6% SE, the sweetness potency of rebaudioside A is 200 times that of sucrose, whereas rebaudioside M is 310 times that of sucrose.	The relative sweetness of mogroside IV, mogroside V, siamenoside l, and 11-oxo-mogroside V were determined to be 392,425, 563, and 84 times higher, respectively, than sucrose at 5% SE.	Thaumatin is 1600-3000 times sweeter than sucrose. Maximum sweetness without a licorice-like aftertaste is possible at lower dosages. When used as a sole sweetener, application is limited.
Flavor	Stevioside, rebaudioside A, rebaudioside D, exhibit clean sweetness at low SE levels.  At higher sucrose SE levels, they exhibit negative taste attributes like bitterness and a  licorice-like aftertaste.  Rebaudioside M exhibits a sweet, clean taste without any bitter or licorice aftertaste.	Monk fruit extract has an intensely sweet taste and a licorice-like aftertaste at higher usage levels. The flavor profile of monk fruit extract is slightly different from sucrose. Siamenoside I presents a better balance in sweetness, bitterness, sweet linger, astringency, and mouthfeel than mogroside V. It also provides a cooling effect.	Thaumatin has an intensely sweet taste and a licorice-like aftertaste. Its taste slightly differs from sucrose.  It masks metallic or bitter tastes. It also provides a cooling sensation.
Temporal Profile	The extinction time for stevia is longer than for carbohydrate sweeteners.  Among all the steviol glycosides known today, rebaudioside M exhibits the quickest onset.	The sweetness of mogrosides has a slow onset profile and longer lingering aftereffects.	Thaumatin is slow in onset, followed by intensification to lingering sweetness.
Threshold	0.1 mM	10 ppm	50 nm

Sole Use as a Sweetener: Benefits & Drawbacks

• Completely replacing sucrose or other nutritive sweeteners, such as HFCS, with these low-calorie sweeteners brings down the calories from added sugar to zero, significantly reducing total caloric value and helps in designing equivalently sweet sugar-free products.
• Stevia, monk fruit, and thaumatin are considered clean-label ingredients, meaning they are derived from a natural source and do not contain any artificial additives or chemicals. This makes them popular with consumers who prefer natural and healthier alternatives to artificial sweeteners.
• The dosage of these sweeteners is significantly less than sucrose in terms of weight. This results in the loss of bulk that sucrose would have otherwise provided in some food products. Food products need other additives for the bulk lost due to the use of high-intensity sweeteners. 
• At higher concentrations, steviol glycoside, mogrosides, and thaumatin exhibit off-tastes. This is a major downside to using them as sole sweeteners in food formulations.   
• These sweeteners do not undergo enzymatic or non-enzymatic browning. They do not caramelize. For this reason, when using them alone, the desired color of bakery products may not be achieved. 

Synergistic Usage

The bitter taste or licorice-like aftertaste of natural high-intensity sweeteners can be overcome by combining them with other high-intensity sweeteners or nutritive sweeteners. Blending these sweeteners with aspartame, acesulfame potassium, cyclamate, sucralose, or saccharin may reduce bitterness, improving the temporal profile and creating a sweetness synergy. Also, stevia, monk fruit extract, and thaumatin can partially substitute glucose, fructose, HFCS, invert sugar, and other conventional nutritive sweeteners in food formulations. This partial substitution allows a partial reduction of the caloric output of food and overcomes the bitter aftertaste.

Considerations for synergistic usage are listed in the table below.

Stevia	Monk Fruit Extract	Thaumatin
– Stevia can work well synergistically with sugar alcohols, including erythritol, sorbitol, xylitol and maltitol.  – The lingering sweetness of steviol glycosides can be masked by the addition of certain substances with floral and sweet notes.  – The bitter aftertaste and lingering properties of steviol glycosides can be complemented by flavors of coffee, chocolate, spicy sauces, and to the astringency and bitterness of tea.	– Blends of natural high-intensity sweeteners, stevia, and monk fruit extract are effective.  – Combination with synthetic non-nutritive sweeteners like sucralose and acesulfame K can work, depending on the product.	– Using thaumatin in conjunction with high-intensity sweeteners and flavor-enhancing compounds, such as MSG and 5’ nucleotides, works well. – Thaumatin gives a body to the sweetness (longer extinction time and mouthfeel), which is not present in high-intensity synthetic sweeteners like aspartame.  – With 10 ppm inclusion of thaumatin, aspartame dosage can be reduced by ~30%. – The additional masking effects of metallic flavors provide a range of applications in low-sodium products where NaCl has been replaced in part with KCl.

Formulation Considerations

Nutritional Properties Comparison

Property	Stevia	Monk Fruit Extract	Thaumatin
Calorific Value (kcal/g)	Zero cal/ g	Zero cal/ g	4 kcal/g (The high intensity sweetness of thaumatin and small dosage required brings the total caloric output to negligible.)
Relative Sweetness (compared to sucrose)	~250-300 times sweeter	~250-300 times sweeter	2000-3000 times sweeter (in normal use)
Glycemic Index	Zero	Zero	Zero
Insulin Response	Does not contribute to increased insulin levels.	Reduces insulin resistance, enhances insulin sensitivity, and improves glucose and insulin tolerance.	Insulin secretion may happen indirectly since amino acids can promote it.
Cariogenic	No	No	No

Stability

A high-intensity sweetener must be stable to degradation from hydrolytic, pyrolytic, and photochemical processes that may be encountered in food or beverage applications. Stability is critical for the following reasons:

• The rate of degradation ensures that product shelf life is not affected. 
• Degradation must not cause any off-taste or odor.
• Any degradation products formed must also be safe.

Stevia	– Stevia is heat stable (up to 150°C). Under controlled humidity conditions, dry powder of stevioside is stable. – In a study, at pH 2-10, no degradation of stevioside could be observed until 60°C with 5% degradation at 80°C.
Monkfruit Extract	– Mogrosides are relatively thermostable. It has been reported that mogrosides do not decompose under continuous heating at 120°C for 12 hours. – Stable at a pH of 3-12 when stored from 2-8°C.
Thaumatin	– Thaumatin is stable during heating even in an acidic condition. – Thaumatin is stable in aqueous solutions between pH 2-10 at room temperature.

Absorption, Metabolism, and Excretion

	Stevia	Monkfruit Extract	Thaumatin
Absorption	Steviol glycosides pass through the upper gastrointestinal tract fully intact to reach the gut.	Mogrosides are not absorbed in the upper gastrointestinal tract.	Thaumatin is a protein and metabolized into constituent amino acids in the gastrointestinal tract, prior to absorption.
Metabolism	– Steviol glycosides are poorly absorbed after oral exposure and hydrolyzed by the gut microflora to their aglycones.  – Human intestinal microflora degrades steviol glycoside to its aglycon between 10-24 hours. – Steviol is then absorbed via the portal vein and primarily metabolized by the liver. – Glucose units may undergo fermentation, but they provide energy in very minimal amounts.  – In the liver, steviol undergoes conjugation with glucuronic acid to form steviol glucuronide.	– Mogrosides are mostly degraded (deglycosylated) by the digestive enzymes and the intestinal microflora.  – Mogrosides can undergo multiple metabolic reactions in the body including deglycosylation, hydroxylation, dehydrogenation, isomerization, glycosylation, and methylation. – In an in vitro assay, mogrosides IIIe, mogroside V, siamenoside I, and isomogroside V were reported to share mogrol as a common metabolic product and were metabolized to mogrol within 24 hours.  Mogroside V was found to be rapidly deglycosylated with elimination half-life value being 0.33 and1.53 h for mogroside V and mogrol, respectively.	– Thaumatin can be metabolized to its constituent amino acids, contributing the same calories as protein [36]. – Thaumatin makes an insignificant contribution to the normal protein diet.
Excretion	– No accumulation of steviol glycoside derivatives occurs in the body. – Steviol glucuronide is excreted via urine.	– It is excreted in the feces as mogrol (aglycone) and other metabolites. – Trace amounts of mogrol and its monoglucoside were found in the portal blood as sulfates and/or glucuronide conjugates.	Protein is broken down into various byproducts. The kidneys remove the byproducts and filter out the wastes through urine.

Health Benefits

Stevia and monk fruit extract have significant health benefits in addition to their sweetness and flavor-enhancing properties.

Stevia

• Diabetes management: Stevia can act as an alternative sweetener that does not affect blood glucose, HbA1C, insulin, or lipid levels. 
• Antioxidant activity: The antioxidant effect of stevia leaf extract has been ascribed to its free radical-scavenging ability, especially its action against superoxide and free radical (unpaired) electrons.
• Anti-cancer activity: Besides the cytotoxic effect of purified glycosides, it has been reported that stevia leaf extracts exhibit similar anti-cancer actions, albeit less potent.
• Reduces blood pressure: Stevioside may reduce blood pressure and fasting blood glucose. In a study, significant reductions in diastolic blood pressure and fasting blood glucose were observed.

Monk Fruit Extract

• Hypo-glycemic activity: Mogrosides augment postprandial insulin levels and inhibit dietary sugar conversion.
• Anti-carcinogenic activity: Mogroside V is the principal component of monk fruit responsible for apoptosis and inhibition of tumor growth and progression with minimal damage to normal cells [38].
• Antioxidant activity: Glycosides present in the monk fruit are effective against oxidative damage to the cell. In a study, mogroside extract acted as a potent scavenger of peroxide radicals.
• Anti-microbial activity: Monk fruit and its mogrosides exhibit anti-microbial properties by inhibiting the growth of several microorganisms.

Identification Numbers

	Stevia	Monkfruit Extract	Thaumatin
CAS Number	Stevioside: 57817-89-7Rebaudioside A: 58543-16-1	88901-36-4	53850-34-3
E Number (food additive)	E 960	–	E 957
INS Number (food additive)	INS 960	–	INS 957

Regulatory Considerations

	Stevia	Monkfruit Extract	Thaumatin
FDA	The FDA has evaluated GRAS notices for the use of high purity (95% minimum purity) steviol glycosides, including Rebaudioside A (also known as Reb A), Stevioside, Rebaudioside D, or steviol glycoside mixture preparations with Rebaudioside A and/or Stevioside as predominant components. The use of stevia leaf and crude stevia extracts is not considered GRAS, and their import into the U.S. is not permitted for use as sweeteners.	The FDA has evaluated GRAS notices for SGFE. The FDA has not questioned the notifiers’ GRAS conclusions for SGFE under the intended conditions of use identified in the GRAS notices submitted to the FDA.	The FDA has evaluated GRAS notices for thaumatin and has not questioned the notifiers’ general recognition of safety conclusions for thaumatin under the intended conditions of use identified in the notices submitted to the FDA.
EU	Stevia extract has been assigned food additive numbers as E 960a for steviol glycosides from stevia, and E 960c for enzymatically produced steviol glycosides and the newly added glycosylated steviol glycosides as E 960d.  The bioconversion of purified stevia leaf extract (≥95% steviol glycosides) through a multistep enzymatic process results in E 960c. Glycosylated steviol glycosides E960d are produced via enzymatic bioconversion of one or more individual steviol glycosides. Stevia is considered a novel food ingredient in Europe, meaning it requires specific approval before it can be used as a food additive or sweetener. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) conducted a scientific evaluation of stevia and its safety and concluded that it is safe for consumption.	It has not yet been approved in the European Union to be used in food.	The use of thaumatin was approved (E 957) as a flavor enhancer in products of food categories 12.6 ‘Sauces’ and 15.1 ‘Potato-, cereal-, four- or starch-based snacks’ at a maximum level of 5 mg/kg in each food category.

Acceptable Usage Limits

Stevia	Monkfruit Extract	Thaumatin
0-2 mg/kg bw	No ADI	Not Specified

Source: JECFA

Additional Resources

• ResearchGate – Phytochemical Composition and Pharmacological Impact of Monk Fruit (Siraitia grosvenorii)
• EFSA Journal – Scientific Opinion on Monk Fruit Extract as a Food Additive
• Tony’s Feir – Benefits of Thaumatin
• Springer – Reference Work Entry on Natural Sweeteners
• Springer – Book Chapter on Natural Sweeteners
• ScienceDirect – Encyclopedia Entry on Sweeteners
• Springer – Chapter on Glycoside Hydrolases in Sweeteners
• Tropical Journal of Natural Product Research – Research Article
• Monk Fruit Corp – Monk Fruit Extract
• GBPUAT – Research PDF on Sweeteners
• eScholarship McGill – Thesis on Sweetener Extraction Methods
• ScienceDirect – Article on Natural Sweeteners
• PubMed Central – Article on Mogrosides
• Thaumatin – Science of Thaumatin