JONESBORO, Ark. August 11, 2026 GreenLab, Inc., an agritech innovator pioneering the large-scale production of the sweet protein brazzein, today announced that its brazzein preparation has achieved Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) and has received their no questions letter in accordance with FDA regulations. The determination clears the way for food and beverage manufacturers to begin incorporating GreenLab Brazzein into commercial products.
Brazzein is a naturally occurring sweet protein first discovered in the berries of the West African oubli plant. With a sweetness intensity of up to 2,000 times that of sucrose, brazzein offers virtually calorie-free, great-tasting sweetness at a fraction of the volume required for traditional sugar with almost no glycemic response. Until now, high production costs and limited scalability have kept brazzein out of reach for widespread commercial use.
GreenLab has spent nearly two decades solving that problem. Using a proprietary process, the company expresses brazzein protein directly in corn kernels, allowing it to be grown, harvested, and extracted at a scale and cost that fermentation-based methods have struggled to match.
"This GRAS determination is the culmination of years of scientific rigor and agricultural innovation," said Paige Jernigan CEO of GreenLab. "Brazzein has long been recognized as one of nature's most remarkable sweeteners, but it's never been available at the scale food and beverage brands need. By growing it in corn, we've solved that problem and this milestone means formulators can now put GreenLab Brazzein to work."
A Scientifically Rigorous Path to GRAS
GreenLab's GRAS conclusion was supported by an extensive scientific record, including a detailed characterization of the brazzein protein, a comprehensive manufacturing process review, dietary exposure assessments, and toxicity and safety data evaluated against the full body of published literature on brazzein. The review was conducted in accordance with the FDA's GRAS framework under 21 CFR Part 170.
Built for Scale, Grown Sustainably
Because brazzein is expressed directly in corn one of the most widely cultivated crops in the United States GreenLab is positioned to scale supply in step with demand simply by expanding acreage, without the capital-intensive fermentation infrastructure required by other natural sweetener technologies. The company works with corn growers across Arkansas to cultivate its proprietary brazzein hybrid.
The result, according to GreenLab, is a more consistent, cost-effective, and better-tasting brazzein than alternatives currently on the market with a supply chain rooted in American agriculture.
What's Next
With GRAS status and the no questions letter secured, GreenLab plans to move brazzein into pilot-scale commercial production, working with food and beverage formulators to explore applications across:
- Beverages and functional drinks
- Reduced-sugar and sugar-free snacks and baked goods
- Dairy and dairy-alternative products
- Tabletop and food-service sweeteners
"If demand continues to rise, we can simply grow more corn," Jernigan added. "That's the kind of scalability this industry has been waiting for."
About GreenLab, Inc.
Headquartered in Jonesboro, Arkansas, GreenLab is an agricultural biotechnology company that develops and produces novel proteins including the sweet protein brazzein by expressing them in corn. GreenLab collaborates with partners across the food, nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, and industrial sectors to bring sustainably produced, scalable protein solutions to market. For more information, visit https://www.greenlab.com.
Media Contact
Stephen Lallo
COO
GreenLab, Inc.
slallo@greenlab.com
401-465-5418