Stevia is a genus of around 230 species of herbs and shrubs in the daisy family Asteraceae (order Asterales), native primarily to subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas, with the greatest diversity in Mexico and South America. Plants in the genus are typically small, leafy herbs or subshrubs with opposite or alternate leaves and small, white to pale lavender composite flower heads characteristic of the Asteraceae family.
The genus is best known for Stevia rebaudiana, native to Paraguay and Brazil, whose leaves contain steviol glycosides — principally stevioside and rebaudioside — that are 50 to 300 times sweeter than sucrose by weight. These compounds are heat-stable, pH-stable, and non-fermentable; the human body cannot metabolize them, giving them effectively zero calories. This makes S. rebaudiana the source of one of the most commercially significant natural non-caloric sweeteners in the world, widely used in food and beverage products as a sugar alternative.
The genus was named in honor of the Spanish botanist and physician Pedro Jaime Esteve (1500–1556), professor of botany at the University of Valencia. The Guaraní peoples of South America had long known S. rebaudiana as ka'a he'ê, meaning "sweet herb," using its leaves for centuries to sweeten herbal teas and as a treat before the plant came to wider scientific attention. Swiss botanist Moisés Santiago Bertoni formally described the plant and documented its remarkable sweetness in 1899 during research in eastern Paraguay.
Beyond the celebrated sweetener species, the genus encompasses a broad range of wild species distributed across Mexico, Central America, and South America, many of which remain little studied.
Etymology
The genus Stevia was named by the Spanish botanist José Antonio Cavanilles in honor of Pedro Jaime Esteve (Petrus James Stevus, 1500–1556), a Spanish botanist and physician who served as professor of botany at the University of Valencia.
Distribution
Stevia is native to subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas, with the highest species diversity in Mexico and South America. The commercially important Stevia rebaudiana is native specifically to Paraguay and Brazil.
History
Swiss botanist Moisés Santiago Bertoni first scientifically described Stevia rebaudiana and its extraordinary sweetness in 1899 during fieldwork in eastern Paraguay. Little further research followed until 1931, when two French chemists succeeded in isolating the steviol glycosides responsible for its sweetness. Commercial cultivation and use as a sweetener developed significantly in Japan from the 1970s, followed by EU approval in 2011 and GRAS status for high-purity extracts in the United States.
Cultural Uses
The Guaraní peoples of South America used Stevia rebaudiana for centuries before its scientific description, referring to it as ka'a he'ê ("sweet herb"). They used the leaves to sweeten herbal teas and consumed them as a sweet treat. Today, steviol glycoside extracts from S. rebaudiana are used globally as non-caloric sweeteners in food and beverage products. Stevia has been widely used in Japan for decades; the European Union approved stevia additives in 2011; and in the United States, high-purity steviol glycoside extracts hold GRAS status, though crude stevia leaf and extracts lack FDA food approval.
