FRESNO, Calif., Jan. 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- S&W Seed
Company (Nasdaq: SANW) today announced it has received a trademark
for the use of the brand name 'Kandi Leaf' stevia. The
trademark will be applied on S&W's unique stevia lines bred for
enhanced flavor characteristics and marketed for the fresh and dry
leaf market, in which S&W currently has two unique stevia
varieties—'SW 201' and 'SW 227'.
S&W's stevia focus is on developing varieties with unique,
enhanced characteristics, providing added value along the entire
supply chain. As previously announced, S&W has applied for
patent protection with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
("USPTO) for 'SW 201' and 'SW 227', and has also applied for patent
protection with the USPTO for two unique stevia varieties for the
commercial processing market—'SW 107' and 'SW
129'.
Mark Grewal, chief executive
officer of S&W Seed Company commented, "Following years of
research and development success, our stevia program is laying the
foundation for commercial-based production contracts, royalty
agreements and other R&D collaborations, as we await our
patent protection being granted by the USPTO. The trademark for
Kandi Leaf follows our earlier
trademarking of 'Stevia California' as we look to brand and market
S&W's stevia development and commercialization program through
the introduction of unique varieties. It is our intention to build
a portfolio of proprietary stevia varieties that we believe can add
value at the front end of the supply chain to address the rapidly
growing stevia market. We view our branding capabilities of our
unique stevia varieties as a key component to our commercialization
strategy moving forward."
About S&W's Unique Stevia Varieties
Fresh and Dry Leaf Market
Stevia variety 'SW 201' for the
fresh and dry leaf market not only has a sweet taste with very
little bitterness and aftertaste, but exhibited more Reb-A, less
stevioside, more total steviol glycosides, a higher Reb-A to
stevioside ratio, and a higher percentage of Reb-A to total steviol
glycosides compared to the comparison samples from common
varieties.
Stevia variety 'SW 227' has an
excellent, sweet leaf taste with very low bitterness and
aftertaste, late flowering, high plant vigor characterized by
extensive stooling and branching, enhanced dry leaf yields and
leaves having an average rebaudioside A content of 10.7%.
Commercial Processing Market
Stevia variety 'SW 107' exhibits
increased concentrations of Reb-A sweetener, higher leaf mass
production and an improved taste profile that has little or no
aftertaste. 'SW 107' has been bred to address commercial processing
markets in North America,
South America, and other regions
of the world that have climates suitable for it.
Stevia variety 'SW 129' has very
sweet leaves with high levels of steviol glycosides, very low
bitterness and aftertaste, excellent overwintering, high plant
vigor, high leaf yield and is late flowering. 'SW 129' is ideally
suited for commercial level stevia extraction due to these enhanced
characteristics.
About the Stevia and Sweetener Industry
Stevia is a relative newcomer in the estimated over $50 billion global sweetener market. According to
a report released by analysts at Technavio on May 26, 2016, this market is forecasted to grow
at a compound annual growth rate of 4.78% during the period between
2016 and 2020. Although this market is still dominated by sugar,
sugar substitutes continue to increase in market share as consumer
concern over sugar intake continues to increase. Stevia leaf and
its refined products constitute a natural, noncaloric high
intensity sweetener, estimated to be 200 to 300 times sweeter than
sugar. Its taste has a slower onset and longer duration than that
of sugar. It has the advantage of not breaking down with heat,
making it more stable for cooking than other sugar alternatives. In
the U.S., approximately 70% of all new products formulated with
stevia are beverages, with the remainder split between diverse
categories, including dairy products and baked goods.
The stevia plant is indigenous to the rain forests of
Paraguay and has been used as a
sweetener in its raw, unprocessed form for hundreds of years. In
recent years, it has been grown commercially in Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, parts of Central America, Thailand, China and the U.S. Currently, the majority of
global commercial stevia production occurs in China.
The incorporation of stevia-derived extracts into foods and
beverages in the U.S. has seen a rapid increase since the beginning
of 2009, when stevia was first introduced as a sweetener
alternative to sugar in food and beverages. According to a Mintel
and Leatherhead Food Research report released in 2014, the use of
intense sweeteners, such as stevia, in food and beverage products
has grown from being used in approximately 3.5% of all launches
globally in 2009 to approximately 5.5% in 2012. The value of stevia
as an additive for use in food and beverage manufacture in 2013
totaled approximately $110 million,
and Mintel and Leatherhead Food Research estimates that this total
will grow to approximately $275
million by 2017. Their report further states that, while
sales of artificial sweeteners, such as aspartame, acesulfame K and
sucralose still dominate the market for sugar substitutes, consumer
demand for artificial sweeteners has seen a decline since the
introduction of stevia. Mintel and Leatherhead Food Research
expects this trend to continue, with plant-derived sweeteners, such
as stevia, providing the main area of growth in the sweetener
market in the future.
About S&W Seed Company
Founded in 1980, S&W
Seed Company is a global agricultural Company, headquartered in
Fresno, California. The Company's
vision is to be the world's preferred proprietary seed Company
which supplies a range of forage and specialty crop products that
supports the growing global demand for animal proteins and
healthier consumer diets. The Company is a global leader in alfalfa
seed, with significant research and development, production
and distribution capabilities. S&W's capabilities span the
world's alfalfa seed production regions, with operations in the
San Joaquin and Imperial Valleys
of California, five other U.S.
states, Australia, and three provinces
in Canada, and S&W sells its seed products in more than 30
countries around the globe. Additionally, the Company is
utilizing its research and breeding expertise to develop and
produce stevia, the all-natural, zero calorie sweetener for the
food and beverage industry. For more information, please visit
www.swseedco.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This release contains
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of
the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such
forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
"Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans,
results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as
"may," "future," "plan" or "planned," "will" or "should,"
"expected," "anticipates," "draft," "eventually" or "projected."
Forward-looking statements in this release include, but are not
limited to, statements concerning commercialization strategies and
the ability to execute those strategies. You are cautioned
that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and
uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or
results to differ materially from those projected in the
forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results
may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking
statements as a result of various factors and other risks
identified in our filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
year ended June 30, 2016, and in
other filings subsequently made by the Company with the Securities
and Exchange Commission. The Company does not undertake any
obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements,
whether as a result of the receipt of new information, the
occurrence of future events or otherwise.
Company
Contact:
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Investor
Contact:
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Matthew Szot, Chief
Financial
Officer
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Joe Dorame, Robert
Blum, Joe Diaz
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S&W Seed
Company
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Lytham Partners,
LLC
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Phone: (559)
884-2535
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Phone: (602)
889-9700
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www.swseedco.com
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sanw@lythampartners.com
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www.lythampartners.com
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SOURCE S&W Seed Company