Layn Natural Ingredients Receives FEMA GRAS Approval for Its Plant-Based Sweetener, SteviUp M2

Irvine, California – Layn Natural Ingredients, a global leader in botanical extract manufacturing and the world’s largest producer and innovator of monk fruit and stevia sweeteners, announced it has received FEMA GRAS approval (No. 5106) for its branded ingredient, SteviUp® M2. The next-generation sweetener was developed to deliver a cleaner, more sugar-like taste profile with improved solubility and reduced lingering sweetness compared to conventional steviol glycosides.

According to InsightAce Analytic, the global plant-based sweeteners market is projected to reach $4.75 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 6.68% from 2024 to 2031. As consumer demand continues to grow for natural sweetening systems such as stevia and monk fruit, formulators continue to face challenges related to taste profile, lingering sweetness, and mouthfeel in reduced-sugar applications.

Layn Natural Ingredients launched SteviUp® M2 in 2025 to help formulators address long-standing challenges associated with traditional stevia sweeteners, including bitterness and solubility limitations, while maintaining non-GMO and clean-label standards.

“Layn Natural Ingredients has spent more than two decades advancing stevia ingredient development to help formulators create better-tasting reduced-sugar products,” said Frank Xie, President & CEO of Layn Natural Ingredients. “Receiving FEMA GRAS approval for SteviUp® M2 further validates our long-term investment in stevia innovation and reinforces our commitment to delivering high-quality, science-backed solutions to the global food and beverage industry.”

Derived from high-purity steviol glycosides extracted from Stevia rebaudiana leaves and produced through a controlled, non-GMO, enzyme-based bioconversion process, SteviUp® M2 delivers approximately 200 times the sweetness of sucrose. The ingredient offers excellent solubility, minimal bitterness or licorice notes, and strong versatility across beverage, dairy, confectionery, bakery, sauce, and functional nutrition applications.

Layn Natural Ingredients has also conducted extensive formulation testing using SteviUp® M2 in combination with its monk fruit sweeteners, demonstrating strong sweetening synergy and well-balanced flavor performance across a broad range of reduced-sugar applications.

“The FEMA GRAS evaluation is a rigorous, science-based review that helps ensure ingredients meet the safety expectations required for flavor use,” said Leo Lin, R&D Manager at Layn Natural Ingredients. “Achieving FEMA GRAS status for SteviUp® M2 not only underscores the strength of the scientific data supporting the ingredient, but also provides formulators with additional assurance when using SteviUp® M2 in flavor systems and sugar-reduction applications where taste profile is critical.”

In addition to FEMA GRAS recognition, SteviUp® M2 received FDA GRAS status (GRAS Notice No. GRN 001203) in February 2025, supporting its use across multiple food and beverage categories, including beverages, dairy products, confections, baked goods, sauces, and functional nutrition products. The FDA evaluation also confirmed that SteviUp® M2 meets established safety and purity standards for commercial food and beverage applications.

For more information about Layn Natural Ingredients’ portfolio of natural, plant-based ingredients, request a sample, or learn more about its sustainability and transparency initiatives, visit Layn's website.

About Layn Natural Ingredients

Layn Natural Ingredients is one of the world’s largest manufacturers and innovators of natural botanical extract ingredients, including innovations based on advanced precision fermentation and enzyme-based technology. For more than 25 years, Layn has served leading brands across food, beverage, flavor, nutraceutical, sports nutrition, personal care, and pet & animal nutrition, and also offers contract manufacturing services. Truly vertically integrated, Layn delivers a fully secure, manufacturer-direct, transparent, and scalable supply chain from seeds and agronomy to extraction and formulation. Its world-class R&D operation includes more than 3.2 million square feet of state-of-the-art extraction and global innovation centers throughout the world to conduct research, ensure quality, and provide formulation and application guidance—alongside a newly opened U.S. manufacturing facility in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which expands local production capacity, strengthens supply-chain resilience, and supports customers seeking U.S.-made botanical solutions. Committed to quality, innovation, and sustainability, Layn continues to advance botanical science while empowering brands with clean-label, high-purity, plant-based solutions. Botanify your product portfolio now with Layn Natural Ingredients.