How Cane Becomes Sugar
Have you ever wondered how they turn sugar cane into sugar? How do they get the sucrose (the juice) out of the cane? Once it's out, what do they do with it? Just let it dry out and crystallize? Maybe you never gave it much thought. Whatever you thought about the process, join me for a mini tour through the Barra Grande Sugar Mill in Lençois Paulista, São Paulo, Brazil.
I traveled to Baurú, São Paulo, Brazil on TAM in a Fokker VFW F27 Friendship Turboprop. The F27 carries about 40 passengers and each window seat is offered a fantastic view out a very large window. After only half an hour out of Congonhas Airport, I could already see vast plantations of sugar cane. This is Brazilian sugar country. The mills here not only produces sugar, but ethanol as well. A great portion of the automobiles in Brazil run on alcohol (ethanol).
Just what does a sugar cane field look like from 20,000 feet?