Beet Sugar
Posted by stride4unity on May 08, 2006 · Member since Feb 2005 · 211 posts
I hear that all beet sugars are filtered without using bone char. Does anyone know if beet sugar can be replaced one for one for refined white sugar? I also discovered Pioneer sugar at the store. Can anyone verify if Pioneer sugar is bone-char free? I've noticed that Domino and Great Value (a generic company) offers pure cane sugar. Companies must be feeling the pressure from the vegans to produce bone-char free sugars! :D
hopfrog (Elizabeth) in another post said, "Sugar is a complicated subject. I recommend you read this excellent discussion, also by Joanne:
http://www.vegsource.com/jo/qa/qasugar.htm "
Okay, I read it. I also heard on the street that almost all of the major companies have dropped the use of bone char in processing. No personal verification yet, so not confirmed.
So, a couple of questions. (1) Is organic cane sugar the stuff that hasn't gone through the final (bone-char-based) processing? I'm a little foggy on that bit. Or should I say froggy (a lot hopfrog)? (2) What am I looking for? Also, where does one find beet sugar? Is there a brand (e.g. Domino) that uses beet sugar instead of cane?
Thanks for any help.
Chris
Hey Chris,
I have found this site to be helpful
http://www.veganstandards.com/sugar.html#Avoid
Apparently all beet sugar is vegan but I do not know the intensity of its sweetness, so I have no clue if it can be used as the same ratio as white sugar. Howe'ver, this site does have a list of vegan-approved sugar. I never knew Pioneer Sugar is considered vegan.
As far as cane sugar's filtration process, I am pretty sure that all cane sugar is vegan. I once read that sugar goes through one of three types of filtration processes. White sugar is decolorized because it is filtered with animal bone char, while cane sugar retains its natural golden color because it is not filtered with bone char. Instead, cane sugar is processed using via an ion exchange system or via carbonization.
And I just found out this site right now after typing all of this which verifies this info
http://www.christianwalks.org/churchgodpro/sugar.htm
P.S Although this site seems like a religious site, I donot intend to endorse christians by posting this link. This site happened to come up in a search engine!
In many parts of Europe beet sugar is all we have. I have noticed that it doesn't shine quite as much as cane sugar, and is ever so slightly yellowish in colour, but not enough to really notice unless you put it side-by-side with cane sugar. I grew up on cane sugar and yes, it is slightly less sweet, but not enough to require upping the sugar content. So yes, use the same measurements of beet as for cane sugar.
One thing, it does take a little more stirring to dissolve, maybe the granules are slightly coarser. I didn't take chemistry so I can't tell you what the actual difference is :-\. Just stir a little more, and enjoy! ;D
All I cook with is beet sugar because my daughter has a sensitivity to cane. Nobody can ever tell the difference. I use it the same as I would regular sugar. Many grocery store chains actually carry beet sugar and unless it says "cane" on the package there's a good chance it's beet, so check with the manufacturer. There's usually an 800 number on the package. I know our Target store has beet sugar. I was told by customer service that if the lot code began with an "H" it was beet and if it began with a "C" then it's cane. They also told me that their powdered sugar is beet, but I would check your local customer service dept. since I don't know if that is nationwide or not. I live in California. I have never had yellowish beet sugar. Mine has always been white. Hope that helps. :)