Stevia - an intense sweetener : laying the ground work for a new industry

The leaves of the stevia plant (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni) contain steviol glycosides, which are natural, intense sweeteners with no calories and can be used in a wide range of food and beverages in place of sugar or other sweeteners (including man-made). Steviol glycosides have been extensively used in Japan, China, Brazil and other countries for more than thirty-five years. This project investigated the key elements of marketing, processing and agronomy to evaluate further potential for establishing a stevia growing industry in Australia. The activity follows on from an earlier scoping study, funded by RIRDC, and reported at: https://rirdc.infoservices.com.au/downloads/06-020.pdf