You still get an after-taste in the back of your mouth as you swallow. It's slightly liquorice overtone is not unpleasant but is noticable. I sneaked half a teaspoon into my husband's tea without him knowing and he picked it straight away.

Nutrition 7/10

7/10 as it helps dieters to cut their sugar intake by half.
Half a teaspoon (2g) has only 34kJ / 8 cals compared to 65kJ / 15 cals for a teaspoon of sugar.

Ingredients

Sugar 99.6%, sweetener (Steviol Glycosides 0.4%)

On-pack claims

• "Better for you"
• "Contains natural ingredients"
• "50% less calories - twice as sweet so you use half as much"

Convenience 10/10

It looks and tastes exactly like white sugar. You simply use half the quantity you normally use for the same sweetness. Bear in mind that it's expensive - prepare to pay $2 for a 500g pack (which is 40c per 100g) compared with $1.20 for 500g sugar (24c per 100g).

Sweetener No 2
PureVia^TM stevia sachets

These look like the little sachets of Equal® that you spot at cafes as a dieter's alternative to sugar.

Manufacturer

Whole Earth Sweetener company, a subsidiary of Merisant who also manufacturer Equal®.

Taste  6/10

Not as ‘clean' a taste as CSR Smart. On a par with Equal®.

Nutrition 8/10

One sachet (2g) gives you 13 kJ (3 cals) but is equivalent in sweetness to two level teaspoons of sugar at 140kJ (33 cals). It's not pure Stevia - it's a blend of three sweeteners (erythritol, isomaltulose and steviol glycosides), along with flavours plus a cellulose powder bulking agent. The amount of Stevia is so small, it needs the cellulose to make it manageable.

On-pack claims

"PureViaTM, the natural sweetener blend with 90% less kilojoules than sugar, made with the pure, sweet extracts of the Stevia plant. We blend these extracts, known as Steviol Glycosides, with other carefully selected ingredients to give you the smooth, sweet taste of PureVia™."

Convenience 8 out of 10

One PureVia™ sachet (13kJ or 3 cals) is equivalent in sweetness to two level teaspoons of sugar (140kJ).

For some strange reason, they are equivalent to two teaspoons of sugar which is fine if that's the amount you normally add to your coffee or tea but you end up wasting half the sachet if you only want one teaspoon. For dieters, I wouldn't want them getting used to two teaspoons of sugar per cup.

Sweetener No 3
Hermesetas SteviaSweet^TM

This comes in three forms - granulated for use in cooking and baking as well as sachets and tablets for coffee and tea.

Manufacturer

Hermesetas who also manufacture sweeteners (saccharin years ago, later aspartame) in tablet and sachet form for many years.

Taste 7/10

7 out of 10 compared to sugar

Nutrition 8/10

The granules are a blend of a starch carrier maltodextrin (53%) together with fructofibres (inulin 34% plus oligofructose 8%) for fibre and the base sweetener steviol glycosides (5%), So it's high in soluble fibres and prebiotic which stimulate the growth of friendly bacteria in the bowel.

On-pack claims

• "100% natural sweetening ingredient"
• "90% less calories than sugar"
• "40% fibre"
• "Suitable for cooking and baking"
• "Low Carb / low GI"

Convenience 10/10

The granules are versatile for sweeteneing fruit and desserts as well as coffee and tea. Use cup for cup to replace sugar, so 1 cup sugar = 1 cup SteviaSweet™. The weight is one-tenth the weigh of sugar, so 50g sugar = 5 g Steviasweet™.