When the Greek ambassador Megasthenes visited the Indus Valley in ancient times, he was surprised by the cultivation of sugarcane, which he described as ‘reeds that make honey without the agency of bees’. Sugarcane juice, mentioned in the Jataka tales, shows that Indians have been using machines to press the juice out of sugarcane reeds since around 400 B.C.
Today, as temperatures soar, sugarcane juice is a ubiquitous drink. It’s also far healthier than other drinks that contain sugar – since it contains only natural sugar (and not the high fructose syrup that drinks usually use). And unlike other drinks marketed as ‘healthy’ and sold in plastic packaging with a hefty price tag, sugarcane juice never really got the attention it deserves, largely because India is its second largest producer in the world.
It’s a big business. Sugarcane alone accounts for 1.1 percent of GDP – a high figure considering that much of its potential is underutilized. According to S. Solomon of the Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research, there’s scope for expanding the utilization of sugarcane into bioelectricity, bio manure, and other chemicals. But so far, it’s been the juice or the reed that has captured our attention.
Sugarcane has long been a staple of traditional healing systems such as Ayurveda and Unani. It’s recommended to cure everything from diarrhoea to dysentery and even arthritis. But there’s a catch – traditional healers recommend biting into the cane yourself. Not machines to speed up the process. By virtue of being unrefined, raw sugarcane can be healthier than the processed output we’re accustomed to.
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