Stevia rebaudiana identity comes before the trade name
Kew accepts Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) Bertoni in the Asteraceae and records its native range from parts of Brazil to Paraguay. The wider Stevia genus contains many accepted species, so the word stevia alone does not prove botanical identity. Atlas retains the accepted scientific name, author, cultivar or accession where available, seed or planting-stock source, farm, field and harvest records, voucher or authentication method and any identity test rather than inferring S. rebaudiana from sweetness, leaf shape or a supplier label.
Whole leaf, leaf powder, crude extract and purified glycosides stay separate
Fresh leaves, whole or cut dried leaves and milled leaf powder retain plant matrix and differ from water infusions, crude concentrates and purified food-additive ingredients. JECFA's monograph describes a multistep extraction and purification route for steviol glycosides rather than ordinary leaf powder. Atlas records plant part, dry-matter basis, cut or particle size, extraction solvent and ratio, concentration, resin, elution, decolorization, ion exchange, crystallization, drying, carriers and yield and never transfers a leaf result, specification or value directly to a purified ingredient.
Named glycosides and production routes define the ingredient
Stevioside, rebaudiosides A, D, M and other glycosides differ in composition, while commercial preparations can be blended, enriched, enzyme-modified, glucosylated or fermentation-derived. Codex's current GSFA group distinguishes INS 960a leaf-derived steviol glycosides from INS 960b fermentation-derived, 960c enzymatically produced and 960d glucosylated products. Atlas retains the exact ingredient identity, production route, named-glycoside profile, individual and total assay, analytical method, dry or solvent-free basis and minor components instead of treating a total steviol-glycoside number as a complete identity.
Purity is notice, method and composition specific
FDA GRN 638 concerns a product with at least 97 percent rebaudioside A and specified moisture, metals, residual solvents and microbiological criteria. Other FDA notices cover different mixtures, principal glycosides, purities and production routes. A supplier cannot use one notice as a universal certificate. Atlas keeps the exact notice or destination specification, analyte list, assay basis, chromatographic method, reference standards, calculation, laboratory, result and lot together and does not extend a notice-specific no-questions response to another composition or use.
Leaf-food status and additive authorization are different questions
The European Commission's consultation register says a non-concentrated aqueous infusion of Stevia rebaudiana leaves was found not novel in a 2023 consultation. That bounded conclusion does not itself establish the status of dried leaf used directly in food, leaf powder, concentrated extract, supplement, purified additive or every destination. EU food-additive rules separately require authorized additives to meet identity, origin and purity specifications. Atlas records destination, product form, intended use, use level, food category, authorization or consultation scope and label basis rather than converting one narrow decision into a global permission.
Exposure references are not health or dosage claims
JECFA and EFSA record an acceptable daily intake of 0–4 milligrams per kilogram body weight per day expressed as steviol for assessed steviol glycosides. The expression basis matters because a finished ingredient contains different glycosides with different molecular weights, and food-category limits or use conditions may also apply. Atlas does not convert the ADI into a recommended serving, health benefit, treatment claim or automatic compliance result; it retains the ingredient, steviol-equivalent conversion, intended food, use level, population, destination rule and exposure calculation.
Residues, solvents, metals and microbiology belong to the exact lot
Agricultural leaf material can require pesticide, foreign-matter, moisture, mould and microbiological evidence, while extracted ingredients also require process, residual-solvent, assay, ash and elemental-impurity controls. FDA GRN 638's product-specific specifications include moisture, lead, arsenic, methanol, ethanol and microbial limits, but those figures do not test another lot. Atlas records farm inputs, harvest and drying, sampling plan, analyte and destination limit, extraction batch, method, detection and quantification limits, laboratory, result, uncertainty and test date for the offered lot.
Origin and custody follow leaf through extraction and formulation
Leaves may be grown and dried in one country, extracted and purified in another, blended or formulated elsewhere and packed by a further party. Botanical origin, agricultural origin, extraction origin, ingredient origin and exporter address answer different questions. Atlas preserves farm and harvest lot, drying lot, shipment and warehouse events, extraction and purification batch, any blending or carrier addition, repacking, seals, certificates and custody links through the final offered ingredient.
Standards and notices do not establish delivered stevia value
A botanical record, ADI, additive class, purity specification or GRAS notice does not establish current availability, conformity, transaction value or delivered cost. A defensible physical assessment still needs permitted current observations for the exact leaf, powder, extract, named-glycoside or formulated product, composition and process, lot-specific quality and safety evidence, origins and custody, package, quantity, currency, Incoterm, load and destination points, delivery window, freight, duties and information vintage. Atlas withholds a delivered estimate when those observations or usage rights are missing.