Ingredion and S&W enter into exclusive U.S. stevia pilot production supply agreement
Agreement enables opportunity to scale U.S. stevia supply.
Ingredion Incorporated and S&W Seed Company, a global integrated agricultural seed technology company, have announced the companies have entered into an exclusive U.S. stevia pilot production supply agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, S&W will leverage its proprietary stevia plant portfolio and production techniques to supply Ingredion and its PureCircle by Ingredion subsidiary with high-quality, U.S.-sourced stevia plants.
Mark Wong, CEO of S&W Seed Company, commented, “S&W has developed unique, non-GMO, all-natural stevia varieties over the past ten years utilizing our proprietary plant breeding program. Recently, we have made what we believe is a significant leap forward by validating efficacy of stevia production in the southeastern U.S. By leveraging a unique seed-to-plant process and mechanical harvesting system, we expect to dramatically reduce overall production costs. Importantly, this method is intended to allow the stevia to function as a green cover crop, helping to sequester carbon. We are excited to enter into this pilot production supply agreement with the world’s largest stevia ingredient producer, PureCircle by Ingredion, to further validate and expand upon our capabilities to date.”