ICUMSA 45 is the most sought after consumer sugar on the face of the planet. ICUMSA 45 is regarded in most 
developed countries as the best (and in some cases only) sugar for human consumption.
Unlike the raw sugar it comes from, which is a deep rich brown color, ICUMSA 45 sugar is a beautiful sparkling white color that is instantly recognizable. The preference for ICUMSA 45 sugar is not only aesthetic however, raw sugar can contain a great deal of contaminants and bacteria, but ICUMSA 45 sugar is so refined that it can be regarded as being essentially pure, and therefore much more safe for those consuming it.
The title ‘ICUMSA 45′ reflects a rating which is conferred upon sugar by the International Commission For Uniform Methods Of Sugar Analysis when it meets a certain set of standards. The International Commission For Uniform Methods Of Sugar Analysis is an international body which has set out to ensure that there are reliable methods by which sugar can be tested and analyzed regardless of where it comes from in the world, and that there is also a ratings system which can be quoted and understood worldwide as well.
ICUMSA Ratings
Put simply, ICUMSA ratings are really a measurement of how white a sugar is. Naturally occurring raw sugars are normally a very dark rich brown, whereas highly refined sugars are so white that they sparkle.
Color description alone is not a good way to sell sugar however, because it is very difficult to describe to another person exactly what shade of brown a sugar sample is. The human eye and the descriptive powers of language are not enough to accurately rate sugar. Fortunately for the world sugar trade, there are scientific instruments called colorimeters which can provide precise numerical readings based on the color of a sugar sample.
The type of colorimeter used in the ICUMSA ratings test is known as a tristimulus colorimeter, and this machine tests a sugar sample by firing different wavelengths of light at it and observing which ones are absorbed, and which ones are reflected back. Color is essentially nothing more than a funcion of the ability of a substance to absorb some wavelengths of light and reflect others. Brown raw sugar absorbs most wavelengths of light and reflects back only brown wavelengths, which is why it appears brown, and also why it gets a very high rating on the ICUMSA scale, sometimes ICUMSA 1500 or more. Refined white sugar on the other hand, absorbs very few wavelengths of light, instead reflecting most back. This is what gives it the sparkling appearance it is known for, and also the nice low ICUMSA 45 rating.
Are ICUMSA Ratings Always Standardized?
Although the ICUMSA ratings system is global, in some cases, particularly with European suppliers, one may find that ICUMSA 42 refers to raw sugar instead of highly refined product. In order to ensure that you and any potential suppliers are on the same page, one should always inquire as to the ICUMSA rating according to the Brazilian SGS system.
Making ICUMSA 45
ICUMSA 45 sugar can be refined from sugar beet or sugar cane. In most cases, sugar cane is the source of sugar, as it is grown more widely, especially in the major sugar growing nations of Brazil and India. It makes no difference to the end product whether the sucrose was extracted from sugar beet or sugar cane, however there are some tests which can ascertain the source material if one is concerned with it.
To create the beautiful sparkling white ICUMSA 45 sugar that sits in the cupboards of millions of homes worldwide, one of two processes must be carried out. If the source of the sugar is to be sugar cane, then the sugar cane must first be crushed so that the natural juice inside the cane, and the sucrose with it, pours out of the cane, and can then be collected for refining. If sugar beets are to be used, then they must be thinly sliced then placed in hot water diffusers, much like tea bags, where the hot water breaks down the sucrose in the slices and carries it away for refining.
The bulk of the world’s sugar is produced from sugar cane, so we will concentrate on the production of ICUMSA 45 sugar from this source. Once the raw juice has been extracted from sugar cane, the next step is usually to create a raw sugar product. This can be done by simply evaporating the water off the sugar solution until a brown sticky sugar mass is left behind, or a more involved operation can be undertaken in which the raw sugar juice is boiled and then left to cool so that sugar crystals form, and then sent into a centrifugal chamber where the liquid is separated from the crystals. The product of this process is VHP sugar.
In order to refine raw sugar into ICUMSA 45 sugar, raw sugar is mixed with a high sugar syrup, which prevents the delicate sugar crystals from breaking down in the next stage of the process, which is known as ‘affination’, and involves the magma (which is the name given to the mixture of raw sugar and sugar syrup) being fed into a centrifuge and spun to remove much of the water content.
After the process is complete, the sugar crystals left inside the centrifugal chamber are collected and dissolved into a liquid solution.
The solution is 50% liquid, and 50% sugar, and it is in this state that the sugar undergoes a process called carbonization, which involves milk of lime being added to the liquid and forming small calcium carbonate deposits in the solution. Some refineries working with VHP sugar will go straight to the carbonization process, skipping the affination stage altogether. Contaminants and colorants are attracted to the calcium carbonate and absorbed, and, being heavier than water, the calcium carbonate soon sinks to the bottom along with the impurities, leaving the sugar in solution much more pure. Once the calcium carbonate is removed, the sugar solution is then carried away for the penultimate stage of the refining process.
Boiling is the stage where excess water is boiled away, and sugar crystals are then left to form in the remaining solution. In some cases, sugar dust may be added to the solution in order to make the sugar crystals grow faster. Once the crystals have formed, they are then once more spun in a centrifugal chamber to separate them from any remaining liquid. What emerges from the chamber is beautifully pure ICUMSA 45 sugar, ready for sale on the international market.
Brazilian Sugar Exporters for Icumsa 45
Please contact me through this form below and let me know your specific requirements. I will get back to you with a price quotation for bulk orders of Icumsa 45 Sugar.