SCH00L ASSIGNMENT, HOW CAN WE MAKE SUGAR SUSTAINABLE

[surfergirl]

Question for yr9 student. My daughter has been doing this topic.

Just a little stumped for ideas on this  question?

How can we make Sugar sustainable for the future?

Thanks for any ideas/imput.

Gabe

[➕👇 ꓤꓱꓷꓠꓵ🎵Tone]

I worked at a Sugar Mill for some years. In Qld they are pretty good at sustainable sugar.

This is from their website :
We have structured the SHE management system based on Australian and international standards. Sustainable sugarcane production focuses on limiting erosion, minimising chemical application and reducing run-off from farms into valuable waterways and the Great Barrier Reef.

Try Google: Wilmar sugar
(They own over half of Australia's sugar mills)

Just Older

[Beggar for the Spirit]

Hi Sister Gabe, 

Here are some thoughts I had as I was thinking about how to help your daughter.

Here is a rough draft of an outline I put together that could help your daughter in figuring out what to research and how to organize some ideas about sugar's value. I am not sure if this is what you or your daughter were looking for, but I hope this helps. 
 

Quote

How can we make Sugar sustainable for the future?

People must view sugar as valuable. If something is not viewed or understood as having value, it will be neglected and it will not have a future. So education is a key! Here are some ways in which people could be taught about the importance and value of sugar: And if people view sugar as valuable, then sugar will definitely be sustainable for the future. 

• Sugar has great value for the human body. Sugar is not just for cookies and cakes. Humans must have....
  • Sugar for energy - How does our brain, nervous system, and muscles get energy? Sugar! 
  • Sugar as medicine - For example, sugarcane is loaded with antioxidants that help to counteract infections and enhance immunity. It has a high content of calcium, magnesium, iron and other electrolytes which is great for dehydration. It helps with the common cold as well as other infections and also counteracts fever as it enhances the level of body’s protein.
• Sugar is the "White Gold" of the future - For centuries, sugar has had great trade value, even the British colonists called it "White Gold". But also in the future, as the world continues progressing toward making products that are "green" or "eco-friendly" in order to preserve our environment, sugar could have a major role and have great value because of....
  • "Bio-plastics" - Modern technology is allowing scientists to create "compostable" bio-plastic, using sugarcane as a primary ingredient.
  • Sugar as Fuel - Ethanol is an alternative to gasoline, it is an ecological bio-fuel that is made using sugarcane. This is considered to be a more sustainable resource than gasoline, and it's less harmful on the environment.
  • Organic Fertilizer - When combined with other ingredients, such as lime, sugarcane can be used to create organic fertilizer. Using sugarcane fertilizer helps improve the quality of soil, thereby improving the quality of any food grown in that soil.

 

Edited March 15, 2020 by Beggar for the Spirit

[Ahuvah]

Make it into crystals and wear them as a necklace.

[boodles]

Where we lived in Tamaulipas, Mexico they burn the sugar cane fields before harvesting, so that creates a lot of pollution. I don't know why they do it that way, but I don't think that's how everyone does it. 

Edited March 15, 2020 by boodles

[Qapla]

25 minutes ago, boodles said:

they burn the sugar cane fields before harvesting ... I don't know why they do it that way,

The benefits of burning sugarcane are:

• An overall lower cost of production that benefits farmers and consumers
• Allows more efficient harvesting of sugarcane in the field
• Reduces the number of hauling units on the highways delivering sugarcane to the factory for processing, thus reducing wear and tear on public roads
• Decreases the volume of material to be processed by the factories
• Shortens the harvest season by as much as 10 percent
• Increases the yield of sugar recovered per ton of sugarcane by the factories and improves overall quality of the sugar produced
• Reduces wear and tear on field and factory equipment
• Reduces energy expenditures in the field and by the factory

 

In order to help keep sugar sustainable - we need to stop "vilifying"it ... calling it evil, bad, unhealthy.  Sugar, itself, is not bad. However, like many other things, used wrong it can produce bad results, The problem is not the sugar, it is the people who misuse it.

[➕👇 ꓤꓱꓷꓠꓵ🎵Tone]

Here we do not burn the cane before harvest. During the process, all the cane is shredded, crushed and pulped. The crushing presses squeeze out the juice which contains sugar. Then the pulp is soaked in hot water and pressed again to squeeze out any more sweet juice. In our mill, this was done 5 times.
The end result was:
1. Maximum yield from the harvest.
2. A sawdust like pulp (called begasse) that is used as fuel to run the whole factory.
The reason they do not burn-off before, is to get as much 'fuel' for the factory.
The chimney stack has a water filter that all the smoke passes through. This water is then filtered, and the 'mud' is spread on paddocks as fertiliser.
The boiler room produces the steam to run all the factory, and there is a small power station on-site. This then sells surplus power back on to the grid. I was told there was enough power to run the whole town (and then some!)
The money from the power sold pays alll the wages, before even making the sugar!
It was one of the few factories that actually runs 'carbon positive'. It sold its 'carbon tax', as it made a 'profit' by running green.
The remaining molasses (after multiple passes to extract sugar crystals) was sold a cow feed.
The most we did at the Mill in one season was over 2,000,000 (2Mil) tonnes.
Coming from the city and retiring to this Sugar City was a fascinating learning experience for me.
It's one of the greenest factories I know.
https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-28/bagasse-can-be-used-as-animal-feed-for-livestock-and-energy/10034466

Just Older

[boodles]

If burning does all that, great. I thought it was just to get the snakes out and make it quicker to harvest. It's no fun breathing smoke if you live near a field that's being burned, and cleaning up "tisne" all the time. 

[➕👇 ꓤꓱꓷꓠꓵ🎵Tone]

They used to burn here. And that was to get vermin and the like out, so the harvesters - who went in by hand - were somewhat protected.

Now it's done with air-conditioned GPS enable harvesters with minimal discomfort.

The factory was a co-op owned by the farmers, and they wanted to go green. So they redesigned and rebuilt the boiler room furnace to take begasse.

Also the water filter on the smoke stack was a good idea, as the town grew around the factory, so it was a friendly gesture for the town and eco.

 

Just Older

 

 

 

 

[surfergirl]

Thank dear friends. So wonderful. Great ways for sugar. My daughter was so happy. 

20 hours ago, Maʹher-shalʹal-hash-baz said:

Here we do not burn the cane before harvest. During the process, all the cane is shredded, crushed and pulped. The crushing presses squeeze out the juice which contains sugar. Then the pulp is soaked in hot water and pressed again to squeeze out any more sweet juice. In our mill, this was done 5 times.
The end result was:
1. Maximum yield from the harvest.
2. A sawdust like pulp (called begasse) that is used as fuel to run the whole factory.
The reason they do not burn-off before, is to get as much 'fuel' for the factory.
The chimney stack has a water filter that all the smoke passes through. This water is then filtered, and the 'mud' is spread on paddocks as fertiliser.
The boiler room produces the steam to run all the factory, and there is a small power station on-site. This then sells surplus power back on to the grid. I was told there was enough power to run the whole town (and then some!)
The money from the power sold pays alll the wages, before even making the sugar!
It was one of the few factories that actually runs 'carbon positive'. It sold its 'carbon tax', as it made a 'profit' by running green.
The remaining molasses (after multiple passes to extract sugar crystals) was sold a cow feed.
The most we did at the Mill in one season was over 2,000,000 (2Mil) tonnes.
Coming from the city and retiring to this Sugar City was a fascinating learning experience for me.
It's one of the greenest factories I know.
https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-28/bagasse-can-be-used-as-animal-feed-for-livestock-and-energy/10034466

Just Older
 

Wow how cool to work in the industry for a while. 

 

[➕👇 ꓤꓱꓷꓠꓵ🎵Tone]

Wow how cool to work in the industry for a while. 
 

(And free bags of sugar too!)

Just Older