Evolva achieves key milestone in Stevia project with Cargill

MINNEAPOLIS and REINACH, Switzerland, May 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cargill and Evolva Holding SA (SIX: EVE) today announced the achievement of a technical milestone in their joint development program of fermentation-based minor steviol glycosides - the compounds responsible for the sweet taste in the stevia leaf. The milestone is an enabling step in bringing additional great tasting stevia-based sweeteners to market in a cost effective and sustainable way for food and beverage manufacturers. 

As a result of the achievement Cargill will make a USD $1 million milestone payment to Evolva. Evolva is eligible for total milestone payments of up to USD $7.5 million during the R&D period.

In 2013, Cargill and Evolva entered into an agreement to jointly develop and commercialize fermentation-based minor steviol glycosides. Later in 2013 the companies announced that their program was moving into pilot-scale ahead of schedule.

David Henstrom, global business director for Health Ingredients, Cargill commented, "We are encouraged by this project's trajectory.  We look forward to offering cost-effective, great tasting, minor steviol glycosides in the market in the near future."

Neil Goldsmith, Evolva CEO, added, "The Cargill and Evolva teams are making excellent progress in a great spirit of cooperation. We are working hard to bring the project forward to the next important milestone."

About Cargill
Cargill provides food, agriculture, financial and industrial products and services to the world. Together with farmers, customers, governments and communities, we help people thrive by applying our insights and nearly 150 years of experience. We have 143,000 employees in 67 countries who are committed to feeding the world in a responsible way, reducing environmental impact and improving the communities where we live and work. For more information, visit Cargill.com and our News Center.

About Evolva
Evolva is a pioneer and global leader in sustainable, fermentation-based approaches to ingredients for health, wellness and nutrition.  Evolva's products include stevia, vanilla, saffron and resveratrol. As well as developing its own proprietary ingredients, Evolva also deploys its technology for partners, providing them with a competitive edge and sharing in the returns they make. For more information see www.evolva.com.

About Stevia
Stevia (stevia rebaudiana) is grown, harvested and used as a sweetener in many countries around the globe. Its sweet leaves have been consumed for generations. Today, extracts purified from these leaves are used to sweeten a range of zero- and reduced-calorie food and beverage products. Stevia leaves contain a number of individual molecules (known as steviol glycosides) that give them their sweet taste. The only commercially available steviol glycosides available today are derived from stevia plants grown and harvested in an agriculture setting. Evolva believes it is the first company to successfully adapt fermentation technology to produce a range of commercially relevant steviol glycosides, using sustainable, low-cost, carbohydrate feedstocks, which can be sourced virtually anywhere on the planet. 

This press release contains specific forward-looking statements, e.g. statements including terms like believe, assume, expect or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may result in a substantial divergence between the actual results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and those explicitly or implicitly presumed in these statements. Against the background of these uncertainties readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The company assumes no responsibility to update forward-looking statements or to adapt them to future events or developments.            

SOURCE Cargill