How is stevia grown?
Stevia production is similar to agricultural production practices related to tobacco. That is why leading international development agencies, such as the United States Agency for International Development (USAIS), promote stevia as a replacement crop for tobacco. Farmers find their agricultural skills transferable to stevia production. Stevia is initially cultivated in greenhouses as seedlings. Once grown, these seedlings are planted, cultivated, and harvested by hand as no mechanical processes currently exist to assist with production. At harvest, stevia leaves are picked, dried and bundled by farmers for sale to local leaf traders or buying stations.
