(Culver City, CA April 8, 2014) – On the heels of a 2013 double-blind clinical trial which proved Axiom Food’s Oryzatein® plant-based brown rice protein equals animal-based whey in building and repairing muscles, Oryzatein has now become the very first brown rice protein to be granted GRAS approval.

The GRAS approval, standards of which are set forth by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is an acronym, which specifically recognizes a substance as Generally Recognized As Safe, under the condition of an intended use. The final evaluation was signed by all members of an expert panel headed by Jim Heimbach, formerly of the FDA and USDA and specialist on issues regarding the regulation of food ingredients. The achievement of GRAS status represents the gold-standard affirmation of an ingredient’s safety. The GRAS recognition of Oryzatein was confirmed based on scientific method, corroborated by extensive history of use, and agreed-upon by the third-party appointed panel. GRAS approval demonstrates Axiom’s superiority in tests of safety regarding how it’s processed, the product’s constituents and exposure to consumers.

Oryzatein is a 100% natural, whole grain brown rice “clean label” protein fractioned without use of hexane petroleum byproduct, unlike many other rice and soy proteins. The approval was granted for the use of the plant-based protein as a high quality allergen-free protein in food grade products as both replacement for, and in conjunction with, soy and whey protein. Oryzatein is used in beverages, baked goods, confectionery, dietetics, nutraceuticals, product substitution, sports nutrition and other products needing functional properties.

“Since 2005, we’ve worked hard to source rice from the most pristine fields in the world,” said CEO, Axiom Foods, David Janow, “we’ve also co-founded the World Rice Alliance, innovate healthful fractioning processes, are the only brown rice protein with third-party clinical research and have attracted the scientific community to use our products in their research. Additionally, we were the innovator of

melamine-free and hexane-free brown rice protein when no one else was adhering to those standards. This GRAS approval gives our customers another reason to insist on “Oryzatein® Inside.”

Axiom Foods is the most innovative source for allergen-friendly, whole grain brown rice ingredients, including rice non-dairy milk powder, and known for their natural and proprietary methodologies for extracting fractions of other plant proteins such as pea. Since 2005, the California-based company has maximized the potential of whole grain brown rice in all its forms. Their signature Oryzatein® is the largest source of brown rice protein. Axiom continues to widen the possibilities of the world’s third largest plant crop into healthful products on which humans thrive.

###