Introduction
Exponent of sugar plants together with beetroot, sugar cane is a plant that, although typical of the tropics, enjoys worldwide fame for the manufacture of the sweetener par excellence, sugar. The use of sugar cane, however, is not addressed solely to human nutrition: in fact, particularly in recent years, the sugar plant is also exploited to obtain a biological propellant, biofuel.
Generality
In botany, sugar cane is known by the name Saccharum officinarum, plant belonging to the Graminaceae family: the genus includes almost 40 different species and the most renowned commercial cultivars are hybrid complexes.
Sugar cane is a perennial plant native to New Guinea: thanks to the Arabs, it was first introduced in Spain, then in Sicily, subsequently spreading - immediately after the discovery of America - in the so-called West Indies.
Although its cultivation is still possible in some regions of southern Italy, in our country it is not cultivated; in Europe, sugar cane is widely cultivated only in the Iberian peninsula, while in other areas of the world it is processed throughout Asia, the Americas, Oceania and Africa.
In addition to the production of cane sugar, the plant is cultivated for the fresh sauce (guarapo) obtained by pressing and squeezing the stem; moreover, sugar cane is a matrix for alcoholic fermented beverages, spirits and alcohol.
Botanical analysis
Saccharum officinarum it is a perennial tropical plant, with a bushy habit, which reaches an average of 4-5 meters in height, although some species exceed 6 meters. The plant has a hard and angular rhizome, from which numerous woody stems interspersed with nodes sprout More than stems, in sugar cane we speak of culms, typically hollow, comparable to those of bamboo: each plant consists of a main “stem” branched into numerous aerial culms.
The culm has a diameter ranging from 3 to 5 centimeters, capable of reaching - or exceeding - even 10 kilos in weight. The color, which varies according to the species and variety, can be yellow, purple, green or reddish.
The stems are covered with very long and green leaves, lanceolate and wedged on knots with a sheath that wraps the culm.
The flowers, very similar to those of oats and wheat, are gathered in inflorescences called panicles, which can also reach quite substantial dimensions (90 cm).
Sugar is obtained from a syrupy fluid present inside the stem.
Reproduction and maturation
The reproduction of the plant generally takes place by cuttings: its transplant, which must take place in mid-spring, requires an abundant quantity of water so that, in the following months, a conspicuous quantity of sugar can accumulate inside the sap.
It should be pointed out that, at the time of harvesting for the subsequent extraction of the sugar, the culm must not be "torn off, but cut at the bottom, leaving the root unscathed: in this way, the stem is able to grow and develop again. , the following year, it is ready for a new harvest. In fact, it takes 12 months for sugar cane to reach full maturity; there are certainly exceptions: in some areas, the plant takes 24 months to fully mature, while in others 6 months are sufficient.
Sugar cane processing
Reached maturity, the sugar cane plant is cut and broken into small fragments; then, everything is squeezed to extract the so-called light sauce, a very sweet juice.
The fibrous and woody part is set aside and destined to be transformed into an energy source; the juice is carefully filtered after being purified with milk of lime.
Through evaporation, the aqueous part is eliminated: thus a concentrated juice remains, subsequently centrifuged to obtain, as the final product, molasses.
Raw cane sugar contains 2% impurities, while refined sugar, therefore subjected to a "further purification, is comparable to the classic one for cooking.
Cane and beet sugar
Whole cane sugar contains less sucrose than beet sugar; moreover, it is richer in vitamins A, C, B1, B2, B6 and mineral salts such as calcium, phosphorus, zinc, fluorine and magnesium.
In terms of yield per hectare, more sucrose (10 t / hectare) is extracted from sugar cane than from beet (7 t / hectare).
In terms of calories, however, beet sugar provides 392 Kcal, slightly higher than the 356 of cane sugar.
Sugar cane in brief »
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