Sugar Cane - An Overview Of The Sugar Cane Plant

Sugar cane is where the vast majority of the worlds source of sugar comes from. Sugar beets on the other hand, is also used in some regions for sugar harvesting. The popularity of sugar beet as a cash crop has been on the rise even though the huge bulk of farmers still pick sugar cane. Sugar cane is a kind of grass that grows very high, up to 18 feet in height. Genetically modified sugar cane is the chief type of crop utilized by plantations nowadays. They are a form of hybrid sugar cane that has been engineered for sugar content in addition to disease resistance.

Found only in tropical regions of the world, countries in such climate zones are ideal areas to grow sugar cane on a great scale. So it comes as no revelation that Brazil in addition to India are the two principal producers of sugar cane in the world. About 35% of the worlds sugar supply comes exclusively from Brazil.

This crop also has a extraordinary ability, it can regrow itself entirely from the roots. During harvesting, the roots are left while the whole stalk is taken. This can be done countless times before replanting is needed.

Sugar cane normally take sup to 12 months to mature, however this may well vary depending on the climate. The harvesting process itself can be lengthy where it can take months for a full harvest. There are two steps when it comes to sugar cane processing. The first step yields raw sugar to be further refined. The second stage produces what we recognize as refined sugar.

The sugar extracted from sugar cane offers consumers some other advantages as well. The juice from sugar cane has anti-cancer properties as it is alkaline in nature. In studies conducted, it was seen to have been effective against prostate in addition to breast cancer. While sugar can is seen as being all too sweet for several folks, it has less sugar than one would find in common soft drinks such as Coke or Pepsi. The waste from the sugarcane from harvesting can be utilized to generate electricity.

Finally, sugar cane is also a good source of bio-fuels. Sugar cane as well as corn have been two of the largest sources of ethanol fuel that is utilized in the automotive industry. Ethanol from sugar cane however, produces more energy per unit than corn.