What is Beet Sugar?
Beet sugar is the sugar by-product extracted from the sugar beet (Beta vulgaris) and is a common sucrose source used in commercial baking, in the form of granulated, powdered, and brown sugars. These varieties are created during processing through adjustments in:
- Crystallization
- Drying
- The addition of molasses
Sugar selection is determined by the desired end product since different sugar sizes may play a role in baked goods’ appearance or taste. Some refining by-products may be used as an ingredient to add fiber content to prepared foods such as cereals.
Description
Origin
Sugar beets are grown in throughout North America. All sugar from beets are GMO, unless otherwise stated.1 Unlike sugar cane, beet sugar is refined in a single processing facility. Most non-sugar by-products from refining are re-used or recycled. Some of these by-products may be used as ingredients in commercial foods. The beet pulp, for example, is commonly used for animal feed.2
The sugar beets’s origins can be traced to a beet species used for fodder across German Silesia. Sugar was first extracted from the root in 1747. The Napoleonic wars stimulated further research into genetics and the refining process since cane sugar shipments to the continent were blocked by British troops.3
The first commercial refining facility in the United States opened in 1879. There were 91 factories in 18 states by 1917. Today, of the roughly 4.5 million tons of sugar produced annually in the United States, about 54 percent is beet sugar U.S
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