In existing processes, extraction and refining of glycoside based sweetener
s from stevia leaves involves many process steps including extraction by or
ganic solvents. The purpose of the present study was to develop a process o
f extraction and refining of sweeteners with reduced number of unit operati
ons and minimization and/or elimination of chemical usage including organic
solvents. It was found that water was very effective for extracting glycos
ides at Selected pH and temperatures. It was also shown that a multi-stage
membrane process was successfully able to concentrate the glycoside sweeten
ers. Based on the preliminary results; it appears that bitter-tasting compo
nents were washed out from the sweetener concentrate in the nanofiltration
process. This work also has demonstrated that a membrane-based separation p
rocess for refining glycoside-based sweeteners could be viable and needs to
be investigated further. Canadian Crown Copyright (C) 2000 Published by El
sevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.