The good guide: sugar
Home » Latest issue » Good, issue 23 » The good guide: sugarWhat's the story behind sugar production? We dip a finger in a few samples
Sugary foods provide a quick energy hit to get you through tiring days or a tasty treat to reward yourself with for surviving them. Sweet fruity preserves are also a traditional way to bring some of summer’s bounty into the depths of winter. And it’s amazing how sour fruit or potentially wasteful cooking disasters can be saved by a sprinkling of sweetness.
That’s the light and happy side of sugar’s story. Less sunny is the potentially addictive nature of sugar and its negative impact on our health when we regularly overindulge. Refined white sugars are pure carbohydrate and have virtually no nutritional value. By comparison, unrefined sugars hold on to the original minerals present in sugar cane, including phosphorus, calcium, iron, magnesium and potassium. They are more nutritionally balanced than refined sugars and less concentrated, and so generally better for our health.
An even darker aspect of sugar relates to its production – including widespread accusations concerning the abuse of sugar workers and the wild spaces cleared for sugar plantations, causing soil erosion and contributing to the destruction of biodiversity. Environmentalists are particularly concerned about the impact of agricultural run off in Belize on the Meso-American reef, in Queensland on the Great Barrier Reef and the impact of Fiji’s production on the Great Reef.
Herbicides and pesticides play a contributing role, which can be avoided if you buy organic. But even organic sugar production does not completely get around erosion problems and the attendant leaching of toxic nitrogen into local water supplies.
For most people, the sugar we buy in bags is only a small part of the sugar we consume each day, but it is the part we have the most control over. So what are our sugary options?
What to look out for:
FAIRTRADE
Fairtrade certification is based on the principles of democracy, participation, transparency and respect of the environment. It prohibits child labour and discrimination based on gender, race, political conviction or religion.
As well as a commercial price, the Fairtrade premium of $60 per metric tonne is paid to producers to facilitate investment and development projects of their own choosing. Fairtrade certified sugar is also delivered ‘free on board’, which means that the seller is responsible for delivering the goods to the named port of shipment, but from that point forward, the buyer has to bear all costs and risks of loss or damage to the goods.
ORGANIC
The Biogro New Zealand organic certification on sugar products prohibits genetically engineered organisms or the use of chemical or synthetic herbicides and strictly controls the use of fertilisers. The regulations also state that: “Water used for irrigation and stock watering must be of appropriate quality. Optimum application rates should be used for irrigation, and all equipment, such as pipes, troughs, etc, should be maintained to avoid problems such as wastage, leaching of soil nutrients, soil structural damage and soil erosion.”
FAIRTRADE AND ORGANIC
For certified Fairtrade sugar that is also certified organic, a premium of $80 per metric tonne is paid to producers to facilitate investment and development projects of their own choosing. Some sugars are certified Fairtrade and organic by Biogro, and some are certified organic by Quality Assurance International, to a similar standard.
What’s out there:
Here's a selection of specialty sugars available locally:
Wholesome Sweeteners
Organic Sugar
Price per kg: $19.94
Source: South America
Processing: Unrefined
Certification: Fairtrade and Quality Assurance International
www.huckleberryfarms.co.nz
TradeAid Fair Trade (but not certified in NZ) Organic Cane Sugar
Price per kg: $5.33
Source: Paraguay and
the Philippines
Processing:
Partially refined
Certification: Fairtrade and Biogro
www.sweetjustice.co.nz
Ceres Organics
Panela Sugar
Price per kg: $19.94
Source: Brazil
Processing: Refined
Certification: Fairtrade and
Biogro
www.ceres.co.nz
Natural Sugars: Harvest Fair Trade White Sugar
Source: Costa Rica
Price per kg: $3.99
Processing: Refined
Certification:
Fairtrade and also ISO9001 – a quality management programme that includes records showing how and where raw materials and products are processed, and allows products and problems to be traced to the source.
In addition, belongs to HACCP – a US Food and Drug Administration food safety programme which looks at biological, chemical and physical hazards in
different steps of the production process, from raw material production, procurement and handling to the manufacturing, distribution and consumption of the finished product.
www.naturalsugars.co.nz
Chelsea Sugar: Organic Raw Sugar
Chelsea’s organic sugars are sold under its own brand or through companies like Phoenix Organics.
Price per kg: $7.18
Source: Brazil
Processing: Unrefined
Certification: Biogro and also ISO 14001, which is a formal commitment by a company to improve its environmental performance by setting measurable goals.
www.chelsea.co.nz
Billington’s Muscovado Sugar
Natural Dark
Based in Peterborough, UK, Billington’s has been trading in sugars for more than 140 years.
Price per kg: $6.98
Source: Mauritius
Processing: Unrefined
Certification: Although Billingtons produce Fairtrade and organic sugars, these are not widely available in New Zealand yet. The muscovado sugar that is available in New Zealand is not certified on either count.
www.billingtons.co.uk
Tue August 28, 2012 @ 10:36 AM
