What is Stevia plant?
Stevia is the generic name of a perennial plant with the scientific name of Stevia Rebaudiana Bertoni which is a subtropical perennial shrub from the composite family, rich of leaves originally growing in Paraguay of South America. It is about 50 cm : 80 cm high. The Stevia plant stays in earth for several years (5 years in average). The Stevia plant is harvested (i.e. cut its leaves & stems) 3 : 4 times per year. Every time it is harvested, it grows again and reaches its original size within 6 : 10 weeks, depending on the environmental conditions. The Stevia plant is synthesizing sweet tasting compounds in its leaves through the natural photosynthesis process. These compounds are commonly called STEVIOSIDES, and commercially known as Stevia Sugar. The Glycoside molecule is the basic unit molecular structure of sweetening compounds such as Glucose, Sucrose, Fructose and STEVIOSIDES. The secret of the high sweetness of the STEVIOSIDES is attributed to its natural molecular linkage to Gl
