Sweet news for Kiwi exporter

Waikato company BioVittoria has been given the green light to sell their sweetening products in the US market.

BioVittoria is the world's largest producer and processor of luo han (also known as monk fruit).

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) notified the company yesterday that that their Fruit-Sweetness branded fruit concentrate has been granted GRAS (Generally Recognised As Safe) status as a sweetener and flavour enhancer.

"BioVittoria has transformed the monk fruit industry through advances in plant varieties, seedling cultivation, growing methods and fruit processing", said CEO David Thorrold.

"The FDA no-objections letter is the final step in bringing our product into the mainstream", he said. "This final piece of regulatory compliance is what the large food and beverage companies (in the US) have been waiting for."

The company has recently been trying to float on the New Zealand sharemarket, but its IPO has come up short of the minimum subscription levels.