The harmful effects of refined sugar are well known. It is one of the major causes of lifestyle diseases. Given the cost of lifestyle diseases on the healthcare system, there is a need to find healthy alternatives to refined sugar.
While switching to artificial low-calorie sweeteners is an option, in recent years a number of natural sweeteners have also emerged. Among them, stevia has gained immense popularity. Stevia is native to South America and it has been used for centuries by indigenous people. However, its benefits are being realized by the western world only now.
Stevia is a zero-calorie sweetener. Apart from this, it has numerous other benefits, including the ability to lower blood pressure. One of the side-effects of the modern lifestyle is high blood pressure, which can lead to stroke and heart diseases. A study has shown that stevia can lower blood pressure.
Another debilitating disease is diabetes. Here again, stevia can be beneficial. The plant has shown to lower blood sugar levels. Apart from this, in animal studies, stevia has shown to decrease bad cholesterol.
Given the numerous benefits stevia offers, it is not surprising that several food & beverage companies are looking at the plan as an ingredient in their products. Also, it is not surprising then to see institutional investors showing interest in companies that are focusing on industrial scale production of stevia.
This morning one such company, Stevia First Corp. (OTCQB:STVF) announced the closure of a $1.5-million private placement with institutional investors. STVF is based in Sacramento, California and is focused on the industrial scale production of stevia.
STVF said that it has entered into a definitive securities purchase agreement under which the institutional investors will purchase its shares at $0.30. The company will raise approximately $1.5 million from the private placement.
STVF has also issued three series of warrants to the investors. The warrants give the investors the right to purchase additional shares.
STVF plans to use the proceeds from the private placement for general corporate purposes, including boosting its stevia commercialization efforts and supporting research and development activities.
Commenting on the development, Robert Brooke, CEO of Stevia First, said that the financing was on quite good terms. Brooke said that based on his experience as a hedge fund analyst managing hundreds of similar investments, the event bodes well for propelling STVF’s future growth.
While the CEO believes the financing was a good deal, shareholders seem to disagree sending shares of STVF down more than 50% since the start of May when the private placement was announced.
