Hansen’s Introduces Natural Fruit and Tea Stix Beverages Naturally Sweetened with Truvia Rebiana

Hansen's Fruit Stix and Tea Stix offer consumers a refreshing new way to enjoy great-tasting beverages in a water soluble powdered drink mix that accounts for 100 percent of the daily recommended dose of vitamin C with only five calories per serving.

3/31/2011 --- Hansen's Beverage Company and the Truvia brand announce the launch of Hansen's Natural Fruit Stix and Tea Stix sweetened with Truvia rebiana, a natural, zero-calorie sweetener made from the best-tasting part of the stevia leaf. The Stix launch adds to Hansen Beverage Company's current line of products sweetened with Truvia rebiana that include Hansen's Natural Lo-Cal Juices and Blue Sky Free sodas.

"Truvia rebiana continues to gain traction as an ingredient in more beverage products in the U.S.," said Ann Clark Tucker, director of marketing and communications Truvia, Cargill Health & Nutrition. "We are pleased to see Hansen expand its line of products with Truvia rebiana. These introductions demonstrate the growing consumer market for products with the great tasting, zero-calorie natural sweetness of the Truvia brand."

"Hansen's Natural is responding to the growing consumer demand for healthier, natural products that refresh and taste great without unnecessary calories," said Patty Fender, new product development manager for Hansen Beverage Company. "The opportunity to expand our Hansen's Natural line is definitely here, and we've been able to do so successfully in partnership with the Truvia brand. As an ingredient, Truvia rebiana helps to make quality beverage products that are essential for our business."

Hansen's Fruit Stix and Tea Stix offer consumers a refreshing new way to enjoy great-tasting beverages in a water soluble powdered drink mix that accounts for 100 percent of the daily recommended dose of vitamin C with only five calories per serving and free of sugar, gluten and artificial sweeteners, flavors, colors or preservatives.

Hansen's Natural Fruit and Tea Stix are available in five flavors - Natural Iced Tea, Natural Blackberry Tea, Natural Strawberry Lemonade, Natural Fruit Punch and Natural Berry - and are sold at Amazon.com, as well as select Whole Foods Market regions, grocery retail stores and Health Food independents nationwide for a suggested retail price of $2.99-3.99 per box (each box contains 8 - 0.14 oz packets).

There are currently more than 20 beverage and food products featuring Truvia rebiana.

After only two years on the market, the Truvia brand continues to set the trend in the sugar substitute category. Cargill note that as the number two sugar substitute, Truvia natural sweetener has achieved a 12.6 percent share of U.S. retail sales of the sugar substitutes category, surpassing Merisant's Equal (aspartame) for the past 12 months and Sweet N'Low in the last reporting period.