GLG's Latest Reb C Varietal Reaches Unprecedented Levels - Nearly 80% in Reb C Content

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Oct. 5, 2016) - GLG Life Tech Corporation (TSX:GLG) ("GLG" or the "Company"), a global and agricultural leader in the natural zero-calorie sweetener industry, committed to the sustainable development of high-quality zero-calorie natural sweeteners, announces today a significant update from its agricultural breeding program.

Through its continued development of its Reb C Gold varietal, GLG has produced a Reb C varietal with unprecedented levels of Reb C - over 79% - relative to total steviol glycosides or "TSG". The TSG content on a dry weight basis is an impressive 13% of leaf weight.

This success builds on GLG's prior achievement, announced in late 2014, of the first strain of Reb C Gold with Reb C levels at 53%. Reb C (short for Rebaudioside C) has historically been a scarce glycoside, typically found in leaf at levels of only 5 to 10%. GLG's 2014 announcement demonstrated its ability to achieve multiple factor increases in the levels of relatively scarce glycosides. That GLG has been able to up the levels by another 50% reflects well on GLG's agricultural prowess. It also bolsters GLG's ability to efficiently produce commercial quantities of high-purity Reb C extracts.

GLG's agricultural program is an ambitious endeavor to produce - all through non-GMO breeding - a number of specialized stevia varietals especially rich in one or more of Reb A, Reb C, Reb D, or Reb M. Last year, this program worked with over 5,000 samples and varieties of leaf. In the 2016 program, the GLG agriculture R&D team is expecting to have over 10,000 samples and varieties to analyze for plants with high amounts of Reb A, C, D, or M.

Today's announcement represents the initial success from the 2016 program. In 2015, GLG announced its development of specialized Reb M varietals - with Reb M content increasing a remarkable 1000%. Given the size and scope of GLG's program, its many years of specialized experience in breeding stevia, and its past successes, GLG expects to announce further achievements from this program later this year. Whether Reb A, Reb C, Reb D, or Reb M - or all of the above - the development of GLG's specialized varietals could be transformative for the stevia industry.