How Sugar Is Made From Sugarcane and Beets

Sugar can be made from sugarcane and beets through a process called sugar extraction and refining. Here's a general overview of how sugar is made from both sources:
1. Sugarcane:
a. Harvesting: Sugarcane is harvested by cutting the stalks close to the ground.
b. Extraction: The harvested sugarcane is then transported to a sugar mill where it undergoes crushing to extract the juice from the stalks. This juice contains a mixture of water, sucrose, and other impurities.
c. Clarification: The sugarcane juice is clarified to remove impurities such as dirt, plant material, and other non-sugar substances. This is typically done by adding lime (calcium oxide) and heating the juice to form a sludge, which helps in settling out impurities.
d. Evaporation: The clarified juice is then heated to evaporate excess water, leaving behind a thick syrup known as "cane juice" or "raw juice."
e. Crystallization: The concentrated cane juice is further processed to crystallize the sucrose. This involves boiling the syrup until sugar crystals start to form.
f. Separation: The sugar crystals are separated from the remaining liquid (molasses) through a centrifuge process.
g. Drying: The separated sugar crystals are dried to remove any remaining moisture.
h. Packaging: The dried sugar crystals are then packaged for distribution and sale.
2. Beets:
a. Harvesting: Sugar beets are harvested by uprooting them from the ground.
b. Cleaning and Slicing: The harvested beets are cleaned to remove dirt and debris. They are then sliced into thin strips called cossettes.
c. Extraction: The cossettes are soaked in hot water to extract the sugar from the beet cells, forming a sugar-rich solution called "beet juice."
d. Clarification: Similar to sugarcane juice, the beet juice undergoes a clarification process to remove impurities.
e. Evaporation: The clarified beet juice is then concentrated through evaporation to form a thick syrup.
f. Crystallization: The concentrated beet syrup is further processed to crystallize the sucrose, similar to the process for sugarcane.
g. Separation: The sugar crystals are separated from the remaining liquid (beet molasses) through a centrifuge process.
h. Drying and Packaging: The separated sugar crystals are dried and packaged for distribution and sale, just like sugarcane sugar.
Both sugarcane and beet sugar go through similar refining processes to produce the final granulated sugar product that is commonly used in households and food manufacturing.

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