Venkateshwara Power Products Pvt. Ltd. Shirol, Kolhapur, Maharashtra

Sugar is which has been refined and washed so that it has a white appearance and no molasses flavour. There is technology to produce pure white crystal cane sugar of the highest purity.It is normally consumed in households and being relatively neutral in flavour, it is used as an ingredient in various edible processed foods and beverages. The sugarcane is harvested mechanically or by hand, chopped into lengths and conveyed rapidly to the processing plant. Here it is either milled and the juice extracted with water or the sugar is extracted by diffusion. The juice is then purified with lime and heated to kill enzymes. The resulting thin syrup is then concentrated in a series of evaporators and then further water is removed by way of evaporation process in vacuum containers The resulting supersaturated solution is seeded with sugar crystals and the sugar crystallizes out and is separated from the fluid and dried. The crystals of raw sugar have a sticky brown coating and can either be used as they are or can be bleached by sulphur dioxide or treated in a carbonation process to produce a whiter product.  

Molasses is a by-product of sugar refining through repeated crystallization of sugar obtained by crushing sugar cane. Molasses is sold both for human consumption, to be used in baking and in the brewing of ale, as also for industrial use. In India Molasses is used mainly in manufacture of industrial/ potable alcohol, yeast and cattle feed. Alcohol in turn is used to produce ethanol, rectified spirit and various value added chemicals.Ethanol is consumed by chemical industry and is also used in blending with petroleum to produce Ethanol Blended Petroleum (EBP). The yield of molasses per ton of sugar cane crushed varies in the range of 4.5% and 5%. Molasses and industrial alcohol-based industries were decontrolled in 1993 and are now being controlled by respective state government policies. Nearly 90% of molasses produced is consumed by industrial alcohol manufacturers and remaining 10% for various other uses like potable liquor.