USA – Ingredion Inc., a multinational ingredient provider, has completed its acquisition of PureCircle Ltd., a producer and innovator in the area of stevia sweeteners, and named a new chief executive officer and a new chief financial officer for the Westchester-based company.

Tony DeLio will serve as CEO of PureCircle and will remain Chief Innovation Officer of Ingredion. He will succeed Peter Lai Hock Meng who was only appointed CEO of PureCircle in January earlier this yea.

SukGu Kim, who was the Finance Director for PureCircle in Asia-Pacific, will become CFO for PureCircle.

Ingredion now owns 75% of PureCircle, with former PureCircle shareholders own the other 25%.

“This is a significant step forward as we advance our driving growth roadmap and further align our sugar reduction and specialty sweetener platform to the megatrends in the food and beverage industry,” said James P. Zallie, president and CEO of Ingredion.

“PureCircle provides substantial growth potential that is aligned with our strategy to create long-term shareholder value. We have always had tremendous respect for the PureCircle team and the business they have built over the last two decades.”

The acquisition was announced earlier this year in which Ingredion agreed to buy a controlling 75% stake in PureCircle. Following the transaction closure, PureCircle is now wholly owned by Ingredion’s acquisition subsidiary.

“Most importantly, our team stands ready to drive new growth opportunities that are fully aligned with consumers’ preferences for plant-based alternatives that are sustainable, good for the environment and taste great,” added Zallie.

Founded in 2002, PureCircle combines research and development with vertical integration from farm to the creation of stevia-based sweeteners.

“PureCircle is a renowned innovator with a proven track record for producing great-tasting, naturally based stevia and derivatives of stevia. And, they have pioneered the development of novel varieties of stevia that are both better tasting and higher yielding,” DeLio said in the company release.

“Our go-to-market model and formulation expertise will be highly complementary when combined with their leading position and innovation capabilities.”

The global stevia market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.43% globally over the next five years, according to a recent forecast by market research firm Mordor Intelligence. 

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