Sugar processing is a multibillion dollar industry that quite literally spans the globe. From the sugar cane plantations of Brazil, to the tables of North America, and countries all around the world, sugar must undergo a great deal of processing to extract it from large stalks of sugar cane (or in some cases sugar beets) and turn it into the sparkling white free flowing crystals that are commonly used in developed nations.
Brazil accounts for the bulk of the world’s sugar exports, exporting over 20 million tons of sugar every year to various countries around the world. The main destination of Brazilian sugar is the United States of America, where the VHP raw sugar is refined into ICUMSA 45 for domestic consumption.
This article will cover the basic elements of sugar processing commonly used in mills around the world. Individual processes will of course vary from mill to mill and refinery to refinery depending on the quality of source material, the type of sugar being produced, and the preference of the management.
Raw Sugar From Sugar Cane
Sugar from sugar cane is the most common type of sugar in the world, though it should be noted that there is virtually no difference between ICUMSA 45 sugar made from sugar cane, and ICUMSA 45 sugar made from sugar beet. Sugar from sugar cane is simply more prevalent because the major sugar producing countries, Brazil and India in particular, both have nice warm tropical or subtropical climates depending on the region. Sugar cane grows very well in these climates, and is therefore grown extensively in these areas.
Sugar first emerges from crushed sugar cane in the form of a deep brown juice. This sugar cane juice is extracted by first harvesting the cane at the sugar plantation, washing it, and then chopping and shredding it in preperation for milling. In Brazilian sugar mills expecially, great care is taken not to waste any of the cane, or any of the sucrose rich juice which is extracted from it.
The shredded cane travels through rollers and mills where it is crushed, and as the sugar juice pours out it is collected for processing. Quite often the juice has small pieces of cane floating in it after the crushing process is complete, and these pieces of cane are scooped up from the top of the sugar juice and put through hot rollers in order to seperate the juice from the bagasse, which is a term for the non soluble part of sugar cane. The bagasse is often used to power the sugar mill, or sold for recycling elsewhere.
Once the juice has been collected and strained to remove any large contaminants, it is ready for the next processing stage. What form this stage takes very much depends on whether the sugar is to be left raw, turned into VHP raw sugar, or directly refined into white sugar.
Raw Sugar From Sugar Beet
Sugar beets are sources of sugar in parts of the world which have climates unsuitable for sugar cane. Russia in particular grows a large amount of sugar beets for domestic consumption. Sugar beet is not suitable for crushing like sugar cane. Instead the beets are collected after harvesting, washed, and sliced into thin slices. These thin slices of sugar beet are then fed into a hot water diffuser, which in many ways fucntions like a large tea cup. Hot water flows around the slices of beet, and as it does, the sucrose inside the beet flesh is released into the water, which is then carried away for processing in much the same fashion as sugar cane juice. Extra sugar juice is also obtained by pressing the beet flesh, which is then sold for the purposes of animal feed.
Sugar beets require much more washing and careful preparation before processing than sugar cane, due to the fact that they grow underground, and there is a great deal more dirt clinging to the beet when it is harvested. Beets must also have their top leaves removed before they are sliced and sent through for processing in the hot water diffuser.
Processing Raw Sugar Juice Into Raw Sugar
Processing raw sugar juice into raw sugar is a fairly simple affair. If the sugar is simply to be completely raw, the juice undergoes a process called evaporation, where water is driven off, and then boiled to concentrate the sugar solution before being left to cool. As it cools, sugar crystals form from the juice. Raw sugar is sometimes purified a little by the addition of slaked lime during the initial evaporation stage, but this is not always done. The resulting product is a sticky brown sugar which is unsuitable for human consumption, but is suitable for further refining.
Processing Sugar Cane Juice Into VHP Raw Sugar
If the sugar cane juice is to be processed into VHP Raw sugar, then it undergoes more processing than raw sugar. VHP raw sugar is a very popular form of raw sugar, as it has a high sucrose content (over 99.4%), which is the quality which gives it the name Very High Pol sugar. Pol is a term used to describe the amount of sucrose in sugar. VHP sugar’s popularity stems from its easy refinability, and high quality, two factors which save much time and money at the destination refinery.
To make VHP sugar, the raw cane juice is taken and boiled to concentrate the solution. Once boiled, it is allowed to cool, and sugar crystals are grown in the solution. When sugar crystals are fully grown, the entire solution is sent into a centrifugal chamber, where it is spun at high speeds. This seperates the sugar crystals from the liquid, which is called molasses.
The product of this first round of processing is VHP sugar. The process is then repeated twice more, and the first molasses undergoes boiling, crystalizing, and subsquently centrifuging to produce ‘B’ sugar, and then once again to produce ‘C’ sugar. ‘B’ and ‘C’ sugar are then combined and dissolved in liquid solution and processed one more time to make VHP sugar. Molasses is a by product of this process, and the third stage of processing creates final molasses, also known as ‘Blackstrap’ molasses. This is a very popular molasses product, often sold in health food stores as a source of calcium, potassium, magnesium, and iron.
VHP sugar is a light brown sugar with an ICUMSA rating of around 600 to 1200.
Processing VHP Sugar Into ICUMSA 45
VHP sugar is almost always processed into highly refined ICUMSA 45 sugar. The bulk of VHP raw sugar is sold by Brazil, and is refined in the destination country, which is most often the USA. The processing of VHP raw sugar into ICUMSA 45 sugar can be carried out in a number of ways, but normally involves additional instances of boiling and centrifuging the sugar.
The sugar produced from these boiling and centrifuging stges is then dissolved into a solution that is 50% sugar and 50% liquid, and a substance called ‘milk of lime’ is added to the solution. Milk of lime forms calcium carbonate deposits in the sugar solution as it travels through the liquid. These calcium carbonate deposits draw colorants and other impurities into themselves as they form, and eventually settle on the bottom of the tank, leaving the remaning solution almost 100% pure sucrose. This stage is called carbonization, and removes not only impurities such as small amounts of bacteria and dirt, but also fructose and glucose. An alternative to carbonization is called phosphation. This involves the addition of phosphorous instead of milk of lime, and has a similar purifying effect.
The sucrose solution is then boiled once more to concentrate it, and sugar crystals are grown. The sugar crystals are now aclear sparkling white color, and once they are grown, they are sent into a centrifugal chamber one final time in order to drive off any excess liquid.
The resulting substance of this process is sparkling white, highly refined ICUMSA 45 sugar, ready to be packaged and sold direct to consumers.
Brazilian Sugar Exporters
We export Brazilian sugar directly from the mills. Please contact me with your specific requirements and I will personally do my best to meet your target price and other requirements.