Stevia leaves have been widely used as a sweetener in South America for centuries and in Japan as an extract since 1970. It has no glycemic index and supplies no calories, and its use as a sweetener is common in many countries. In 1987, the FDA issued a ban on stevia because it had not been approved as a food additive, although it continued to be available as a dietary supplement. After being provided with sufficient scientific data regarding side-effects of using stevia as a sweetener from companies, such as Cargill and Coca-Cola, the FDA gave a "no objection" approval for generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status in December 2008 to Truvia, for use of the refined stevia extracts as a blend of rebaudioside A and erythritol (developed by Cargill and The Coca-Cola Company), as well as PureVia (developed by PepsiCo and the Whole Earth Sweetener Company, a subsidiary of Merisant),