Actually, it's possible. First, look for the word "unrefined" on the packaging; if sugar is designated as “brown refined”, it means that it is a product containing dyes and extraneous additives. Second, flavor cane molasses quite characteristic, and it is not difficult to distinguish it from the smell of burnt sugar, which fakes tint. Thirdly, natural cane brown sugar is always quite expensive. It is more expensive to produce (in particular, sugar cane must be processed within a day after it has been cut), and because it is produced abroad (in Russia it can only be packaged in bags, and large producers never hide this), And shipping costs money too.
Buy sugar from producers who have been on the market for a long time. They value their name and monitor the quality of products.
To determine if you bought real brown sugar and fake, you can do this: dip a spoonful of sugar into a glass of warm water. If the water is colored and the crystals lose color, then the sugar is fake.
No, it's not. Brown sugar has its color because it contains molasses. However, it is concentrated in the upper layers of the sugar crystal, and when it enters the water, it dissolves faster than the sugar itself - and this is more noticeable on larger crystals. This is explained by the fact that each brown sugar crystal is formed separately during synthesis, and does not break off from a larger monolith. In this crystal, sucrose molecules are located very tightly, leaving no room for other molecules, and as the crystal grows, molasses is pushed into the upper layers.
The picture as a whole is this: the sugar crystal is transparent inside, and colored with molasses on the outside - and this coloring occurs naturally, with the growth of the crystal.
Brown sugar is less caloric than white sugar and therefore more beneficial.
Yes, brown sugar is healthier than white sugar, but for a different reason. In addition to calories, it contains various minerals that are extremely useful for the human body. As for the calorie content of brown sugar, it is almost the same as that of white.
Brown sugar can be made from any raw material, you just need not to refine the raw sugar.
No, you can't make brown sugar from everything, only from sugar cane. More precisely, it will work, but it will be very expensive. For example, raw beet sugar is practically inedible - the mass enveloping its crystals smells unpleasant and also tastes disgusting. Therefore, to make brown sugar from beets, you must first make beet sugar, then clean it completely, whiten it, and then color it with cane molasses. Obviously, the game is not worth the candle.
The benefits and harms of sugar have already been said and written countless times, disputes on this topic flare up with enviable constancy. Nevertheless, we used and will continue to use sugar on a daily basis, as it is not only a pleasant addition to or coffee, but is also part of many products (confectionery and bakery products, sweet soda, ready-made breakfasts and even semi-finished meat products).
In order to protect your body from unpleasant consequences, it is important not only to comply with the norm of sugar consumption (no more than 50 grams per day), but also to make sure that the product purchased in the store is of high quality and does not contain impurities. Unfortunately, a fake or a product damaged as a result of non-compliance with storage conditions can be encountered quite often. Such sugar can cause harm to health even in small quantities, as it can contain a variety of impurities and be a breeding ground for mold and fungus.
How to check quality
In order not to become a victim of scammers and unscrupulous sellers trying to sell fake or damaged goods, you need to know what to look for when choosing sugar. It is possible to distinguish a fake from a quality product on your own without the help of special expertise.
Packing check
First of all, when buying, it is necessary to inspect the packaging, it should not be damaged (sand should not spill out) and traces of smudges, sugar should easily pour inside the package, not stick together and not form lumps, it should also be uniform in color and structure.
- the product's name;
- what raw materials it is made from (beets or sugar cane);
- name, legal address of the manufacturer and telephone number;
- country and location of production;
- nutritional value and calorie content;
- Net weight;
- date of production and packaging;
- best before date;
- storage conditions.
Preference should be given to sugar of the first category, it is also worth paying attention to the mark of compliance with GOST. If the sugar is refined, this must be written on the package.
You should not buy granulated sugar, which is marked "sweet", as it additionally contains a sweetener that enhances the taste of the product several times.
Water test
Both white and brown sugar are easy to check with a regular glass of water - a spoonful of high-quality sugar without impurities will dissolve in it without residue. If during this small experiment the color of the water has changed or sediment has appeared at the bottom of the glass, you should not eat such a product, as it is most likely a fake and contains impurities that are harmful to health.
Testing with fire
If 2-3 tablespoons of sugar are dissolved in a small amount of water, and the resulting mixture is put on fire, in just a couple of minutes the liquid should thicken and turn into caramel. If this did not happen, the water changed color, turned cloudy, turned into gruel, this is a clear indicator that sugar is a fake and you should not use it either.
Brown (cane) sugar test
It is necessary to dissolve a tablespoon of cane sugar in a glass of water, and then add a few drops of ordinary iodine. If the product is of high quality, the water will acquire a blue tint.
Taste, smell and color
Sugar easily absorbs odors and moisture, so it is very important to maintain the integrity of the package and observe the conditions for its storage, otherwise the product may be spoiled. To make sure that sugar does not contain a foreign odor, a small amount of it must be poured into the palm of your hand, squeezed, held for a minute, and then smelled. The presence of an uncharacteristic odor can also affect the taste of the product; in this case, it is not recommended to eat it, since violation of storage conditions can lead not only to a change in taste and smell, but also to the development of various pathogens.
The color of sugar is also an indicator of its quality. Depending on the type and degree of purification, it can range from crystal white to dark brown, the main thing to pay attention to is uniformity and the absence of impurities.
Roscontrol
In December 2016, Roskontrol carried out its inspection of five samples of granulated sugar. The results can be found at the link.
Finally
Complete rejection of sugar is a radical measure, because glucose contributes to correct work brain, improves our body's ability to resist stress and is able to give the necessary boost of energy and good mood. But, as in the case of other products, only a product of high quality, produced and stored in accordance with all the rules, can bring benefits.
Until I tried real cane sugar, I thought with full confidence that I was buying at the supermarket. healthy sugar under the guise of cane and only recently found out that all the "cane" sugar in the store is just ordinary refined sugar, covered with a thin film of cane molasses, and real sugar must be found elsewhere.
At first I was very indignant, because on the packages of very well-known and popular manufacturers such as Mistral - Demerara cane sugar, Brown & White "Golden Demerara, BILLINGTON'S" Natural Demerara "this supposedly real cane sugar is clearly written: unrefined cane sugar and then a list of microelements is written .
Aren't manufacturers responsible for a product that doesn't match what they write on the packaging?
It turns out that in Europe it is allowed to write unrefined sugar on the package if it was covered with cane molasses. That is, such artificially produced unrefined sugar is obtained, which has nothing to do with real sugar obtained from stripped off cane juice.
In Russia, unfortunately, there are no regulations at all that would prohibit the sale of refined sugar coated with cane molasses under the guise of unrefined sugar.
Test purchase results!
“Googling” on the Internet, I found several forums where fake cane sugar is actively discussed by the above companies, but the most interesting thing that I managed to find on this topic is, of course, the published results test purchase"cane" sugar of these firms. The study showed that all the samples presented were nothing more than ordinary refined sugar coated with cane molasses.
What exactly the refined sugar was from - from sugar beets or from cane, they did not begin to determine, since it no longer matters, because refined cane sugar is of no use as well as beet sugar. All the benefits of sugar in molasses! For proper nutrition raw sugar is used
Who produces real cane sugar?
Fortunately, not everything is so bad, and I found the only company I know that produces the very real and healthy unrefined cane sugar - this is the Indian company Akshaya Invite LLC, which produces its Gur sugar under the Saharaja brand. What is interesting The birthplace of cane sugar is India and where, if not there, you can find real cane sugar!
5 Signs of Real Cane Sugar!
These pebbles are often formed when cane sugar hardens.
Water on the left, Saharaja sugar added to the water on the right
On the left is a transparent tea without sugar, on the right is a cloudy tea with sugar "Saharaja"
There is also the 6th sign, but you cannot check it at home - this is a rich vitamin and mineral composition.
Sugar "Saharaja" contains per 100 gr. product: iron - 2.05 mg, phosphorus - 22.3 mg, magnesium - 117.4 mg, zinc - 0.594 mg, potassium - 331.4 mg, calcium - 62.17 mg, vit. PP - 0.01 mg, vit C - 0.057 mg, vit B2 - 0.004 mg, vit B1 - 0.012 mg.
The question arises, where to buy unrefined cane sugar?
I used to buy it in organic online stores, and now I go to my store for sugar, and you can also buy Saharaja cane sugar in our store!
"The darker the cane sugar, the more natural it is." "Fake is always lighter." Is it really? How can you tell real brown sugar from fake? And what does "real" and "fake" mean? We deal with the technologist of the company Novaprodukt Alexander Ivanov.
Fake brown sugar is white refined sugar colored with molasses, the molasses that remains when sugarcane juice is boiled down. By itself, molasses is not harmful or dangerous, it contains a number of useful trace elements, such as calcium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, and potassium. All this is also found in unrefined brown cane sugar. In the process of refining, raw sugar is cleaned of impurities, but along with them, useful substances also leave the raw material. When we buy brown sugar in the store, we hope to get all the benefits it contains. useful substances. Why is molasses bad? In this case, it's a scam. The buyer pays much more for the same inexpensive and devoid of useful components refined sugar.
Even for a professional, it is difficult to distinguish real brown sugar from a fake, only the smell of caramel helps. We ourselves go to the factories with which we want to establish cooperation, and personally see how, from what and under what conditions sugar is packaged or produced. The buyer in the store should pay attention to the packaging: it should say “unrefined cane sugar” - without any additions; Also, respectable manufacturers on the packaging indicate the country of origin of sugar. Sugar can be either dark brown or light brown, so the color, unfortunately, is not an indication of the authenticity of cane sugar. The color depends on the content of molasses in sugar: the more it is, the darker the sugar. In addition, the color of sugar depends on the region where the sugar cane grows - it's about the same as with oranges.
There are four main types of cane sugar: demerara - has a golden brown color, it is he who can most often be found in Russian stores; muscovado, aka Barbados, - has a very dark color and strong caramel flavor; soft molasses sugar - has a slightly wet appearance and a very dark color; turbinado, also known as raw sugar, is lighter in color because it is partially separated from molasses with water and steam, but not refined.
In Russia, sugar is produced from sugar beets, after refining raw sugar, we get the usual white sugar. Unrefined beet sugar has an unpleasant taste and smell. Brown sugar (we are not talking about fake sugar here) is made from sugar cane and is not refined, as it initially has a very pleasant vanilla-caramel taste and smell. In our country, it is more profitable and profitable to produce beet sugar, since sugar cane does not grow on our territory, hence the higher price of cane sugar on the shelf.
illustration: Olya Volk
