Are animal ingredients included in white sugar? 
 
 Bone char, which is used to process sugar, is made from the bones of cattle from Afghanistan, Argentina, India, and Pakistan. The bones are sold to traders in Scotland, Egypt, and Brazil who then sell them back to the U.S. sugar industry. The European Union and the USDA heavily regulate the use of bone char. Only countries that are deemed BSE-free can sell the bones of their cattle for this process. Bone char—often referred to as natural carbon—is widely used by the sugar industry as a decolorizing filter, which allows the sugar cane to achieve its desirable white color. Other types of filters involve granular carbon or an ion-exchange system rather than bone char. 
 
 Bone char is also used in other types of sugar. Brown sugar is created by adding molasses to refined sugar, so companies that use bone char in the production of their regular sugar also use it in the production of their brown sugar. Confectioner’s sugar—refined sugar mixed with cornstarch—made by these companies also involves the use of bone char. Fructose may, but does not typically, involve a bone-char filter. Supermarket brands of sugar (e.g., Giant, Townhouse, etc.) obtain their sugar from several different refineries, making it impossible to know whether it has been filtered with bone char. 
 
 If you want to avoid all refined sugars, we recommend alternatives such as Sucanat and turbinado sugar, which are not filtered with bone char. Additionally, beet sugar—though normally refined—never involves the use of bone char and Edward & Sons Trading Company has developed a vegan confectioner’s sugar which should be available in health food stores soon. 
 
 It would be virtually impossible for PETA to maintain information on the refining process used for the sugar in every product. We encourage you to contact companies directly to ask about the source of their sugar. 
 
 The following companies do not use bone-char filters: 
 
 Michigan Sugar Company 
 
 2600 S. Euclid Ave. 
 
 Bay City, MI 48706 
 
 Tel.: 989.686.0161 
 
 Fax: 989.671.3695 
 
 Web: www.michigansugar.com 
 
 Florida Crystals Corporation 
 
 P.O. Box 471 
 
 West Palm Beach, FL 33480 
 
 Tel.: 877-835-2828 
 
 Fax: 516-366-5200 
 
 Web: www.floridacrystals.com 
 
 SuperValu 
 
 SUPERVALU Corporate Headquarters 
 
 East View Innovation Center 
 
 7075 Flying Cloud Drive 
 
 Eden Prairie, MN 55344 
 
 Tel.: 952-828-4000 
 
 Web.: www.supervalu.ie/ 
 
 Western Sugar 
 
 Western Sugar is a subsidiary of Tate & Lyle (formerly Domino sugar) which does use bone-char filters. However, Western Sugar makes only beet sugar, which does not use bone-char filters. 
 
 7555 E. Hampton Ave., Ste. 600 
 
 Denver, CO 80210 
 
 Tel.: 303-830-3939 
 
 Fax: 303-830-3941 
 
 Web: www.westernsugar.com 
 
 Wholesome! 
 
 14141 Southwest Freeway, Suite 160 
 
 Sugar Land, TX 77478 
 
 Tel.: 800-680-1896 
 
 Web.: www.WholesomeSweet.com 
 
 The following companies do use bone-char filters. Contact them and encourage them to adopt the use of humane alternatives to bone-char filters: 
 
 C&H Sugar Company 
 
 2300 Contra Costa Blvd., Ste. 600 
 
 Pleasant Hill, CA 94523 
 
 Tel.: 925-688-1731 
 
 Fax: 925-822-1061 
 
 E-Mail: [email protected] 
 
 Web: www.chsugar.com 
 
 Savannah Foods 
 
 P.O. Box 335 
 
 Savannah, GA 31402 
 
 Tel.: 912-234-1261 
 
 Tate & Lyle North American Sugars Inc. (formerly Domino Sugar) 
 
 1100 Key Hwy. W. 
 
 Baltimore, MD 21230 
 
 Tel.: 1-800-638-1590 
 
 Fax: 410-783-8640 
 
 Imperial Sugar 
 
 P.O. Box 9 
 
 Sugarland, TX 77487 
 
 Tel.: 1-800-727-8427 
 
 Web: www.imperialsugar.com 
 
 Refined Sugars Inc. 
 
 1 Federal St. 
 
 Yonkers, NY 10702 
 
 Tel.: 914-963-2400 
 
 Fax: 914-963-1030 ||||| Is Your Sugar Vegan? 
 
 In 1997, The Vegetarian Resource Group published an article on sugar refining, focusing in particular on the char derived from cow bones that is used as a filter to whiten cane sugar during the refining process. In this report, The VRG revisits the issue of bone char use in the sugar industry, examines emerging practices for refining sugar, and discusses alternatives to sugar refined with bone char. 
 
 Where The Sugar Industry Stands Today 
 
 The sugar industry's practices haven't changed much over the past decade. The same large American cane sugar companies that were operating then are still in business and have bought out smaller operations in the United States. There are a few small cane sugar companies, but there are really only two large cane sugar enterprises—Imperial/Savannah Foods (Dixie Crystal) and Florida Crystals. Florida Crystals owns American Sugar Refining (Domino Foods) as well as the C&H; Sugar Company, both of which now call bone char "natural charcoal." 
 
 The two major companies refine most of the sugar sold on store shelves in the United States. The majority of this sugar is produced and consumed domestically, although some of the sugar sold by American Sugar Refining is purchased from Australia or Brazil. (By comparison, much of the sugar in packaged products sold in the United States is imported.) 
 
 The U.S. companies still use cow bone char as the preferred filter for cane sugar. The exception is a plant that American Sugar Refining owns in Yonkers, NY, which uses an ion exchange system that cost $30 million. Their refining process is quite different and involves liquid sugar that cannot be filtered through bone char. Jeffrey Robinson, Technical Director of American Sugar Refining, said the Yonkers, NY, plant is only the company’s fourth-highest producing plant of five plants, yielding approximately 4 million pounds of sugar per day. On another note, Paul Caulkins, the Corporate Quality Assurance Manager of Imperial/Savannah Foods, said his company is seriously looking into overhauling its filtering system at a price tag of $25 million because there have been recent improvements in ion exchange filter technology. 
 
 In 1997, The VRG reported that Refined Sugars, Inc., maker of Jack Frost sugar, used granular carbon instead of bone char. Refined Sugars was one of the companies bought out by Domino, which uses bone char for most of its sugars. (See the table on page 18 for the names of Domino’s non-organic and organic brands that are not filtered through bone char.) Jack Frost sugar is still being produced at their Yonkers plant. It is available in New York and northern Pennsylvania and constitutes approximately 0.5 percent of Domino’s total sugar production. 
 
 Imperial Sugar produces a turbinado sugar that has not been processed through bone char. The Imperial Sugar Company is part owner of Wholesome Sweeteners, which produces several brands of sweeteners that are not filtered through bone char. (See table on page 18.) 
 
 VegNews published a 2006 article stating that a small cane sugar company, U.S. Sugar Corporation, uses a 'new' sugar refining process that does not involve bone char. U.S. Sugar has not responded to several phone calls that The VRG has made regarding their cane sugar refining process. 
 
 Why Bone Char In The First Place? 
 
 The average consumer's love affair with white, sweet foods prompted the sugar industry to develop a sugar refining process that would yield 'pure' white crystals. Hundreds of years ago, sugar refiners discovered that bone char from cattle worked well as a whitening filter, and this practice is now the industry standard. 
 
 Sugar cane has held an approximately 50 percent market share of sugar in recent history, with sugar from sugar beets taking the rest. Beet sugar is not refined in the same way as cane sugar. Bone char filtering is never used in beet sugar processing. 
 
 Unfortunately for consumers buying prepackaged, sweetened foods or those eating out, it is difficult to know the source of the white refined sugar that these foods contain. 
 
 Consumers should be forewarned that making a company inquiry will not usually resolve their concerns because many manufacturers purchase both sugar produced from sugar beets and sugar produced from sugar cane. Robinson stated, "Common practice at many manufacturers is to store refined sugar from both sources in the same bin, thereby co-mingling the two." It is likely that a certain prepackaged or restaurant-served food may contain both cane and beet sugar. Proportions of each in any given serving probably vary over time. 
 
 The Exact Role of Bone Char In Sugar Refining 
 
 A bone char filter acts like a crude filter and is most often used first in cane sugar refining. To sugar scientists, it is a 'fixed bed adsorption' filter, meaning that particles unlike itself stick to it. It is also the most efficient filter for removing colorants; the most frequently found colorants are amino acids, carboxylic acids, phenols, and ash. 
 
 The bone char is not as good at removing impurities such as inorganic ions, so after being put through bone char, sugar may be passed through activated char- coal or an ion exchange system as well. The sugar also goes through several different filters to remove larger particles. Nevertheless, bone char filters are the most efficient and most economical whitening filters, thereby maintaining their position as the industry’s cane sugar filter of choice. 
 
 Connie Hunter, Consumer Relations Specialist for Domino Sugar and the C&H; Sugar Company, said the bones used to make bone char come from "non-European cattle." Robinson told us that American Sugar Refining purchases its bone char from a Scottish company, which did not respond to our inquiries. He said that he has been told these bones come from cattle that have died naturally in Brazil, India, Morocco, Nigeria, and Pakistan. The bones are sun-dried and incinerated for 12 hours at more than 700 degrees Celsius. During the burning process, all organic matter that may be present—including viruses, bacteria, and proteins—is destroyed, leaving only an inert granular substance that is 10 percent elemental carbon and 90 percent calcium hydroxyapatite. 
 
 The other major company that sells bone char to the sugar industry is the American Charcoal Company, which was started in 2002 and is located in Wyoming. According to American Charcoal representative Craig Giles, the company gets its bone char in ready-to-sell form from Brazil’s cattle industry. Imperial/Savannah Foods purchases its bone char from both the Scottish company and American Charcoal. 
 
 How Much Bone Char Is Used? 
 
 Paul Caulkins, the Corporate Quality Assurance Manager of Imperial/Savannah Foods, said that little bone char can be obtained from a single cow "since only the dense bones of the animal, such as the pelvic bones, can be used." After checking with his suppliers, Caulkins informed us that "one cow averages 82 pounds of total bone. About one-fourth to one-fifth of the total weight (between 17 and 20 pounds per animal) is the load-bearing bone used for char (due to its strength). Since our yield conversion to char from that is approximately 50 percent, on average, one cow will produce nine pounds of bone char." 
 
 Sugar companies purchase large quantities of bone char for several reasons, the first being the sheer size of their operations. Large commercial filter columns often measure 10 to 40 feet high and five to 20 feet wide. Each column, which can filter 30 gallons of sugar per minute for 120 hours at a time, may hold 70,000 pounds of char. If nine pounds of char is produced by one cow and 70,000 pounds are needed to fill a column, a simple math calculation reveals that the bones of almost 7,800 cattle are needed to produce the bone char for one commercial sugar filter. (We did not receive a verification of this estimate from another source.) Furthermore, each refining plant may have several large filter columns. 
 
 Companies use up their supplies of bone char relatively quickly. Since bone char is the first filter used in the sugar refining process, its granules absorb large amounts of colorants and impurities. This means that the overall working life for bone char granules may be reduced significantly. In general, bone char may last for five to 10 years, depending on the volume of raw material filtered through it and the level of impurities in the sugar. The bone char may be rejuvenated several times by burning it at 9,500 degrees in a kiln for 20 minutes, but this typically occurs only once. 
 
 Over time, some of the char disintegrates and becomes too small in particle size to filter anymore, so that portion is screened off. Also, colorants and other impurities begin to permanently fill the bone char's microscopic holes, compromising its effectiveness. These impurities make the char heavy, and it can't be volatilized off when rejuvenated in a kiln. Even with the massive quantities of bone char that industries secure, these factors contribute to the need to replenish their bone char stores regularly. 
 
 At this time, the cane sugar industry believes that only more cow bone char can fill the same roles as well as bone char. Other technologies, such as reverse osmosis, have been under study for a long time, but they don’t perform as well as bone char does at the high temperatures used in the refining process. Perhaps by the time of our next update on the sugar industry, bone char will no longer be a mainstay of sugar refining, especially since Caulkins stated that the prices of bone char, activated carbon, and ion exchange technologies are comparable. What’s needed is improved tech- nology, consumer pressure on the industry to change its refining methods, and the capital investment—a tall order for now but maybe a reality one day. 
 
 Organic Sugar: Always Bone Char-Free 
 
 The increasing popularity of organic foods in the United States has bolstered the production of the organic sugar industry. In fact, The VRG is happy to report that there is a large market niche for organic sweeteners. 
 
 To maintain its organic integrity, organic sugar is only minimally processed or not refined at all. Since bone char is not on the National Organic Program's National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances, certified USDA organic sugar cannot be filtered through bone char. In fact, the technical directors of both Imperial Sugar and American Sugar Refining told us that organic sugars are only milled and never go to the refinery where the bone char filters are located. 
 
 A common processing aid, lime, is used as a clarifying agent in organic cane sugar processing, removing cane fibers and field debris. Since lime is on the National List, it can be used in organic sugar production. However, because the lime itself is synthetic, no organic sugar processed in this manner can ever be certified 100% USDA Organic; the maximum certification it can receive is 95% certified organic. Consequently, any sugar-containing product made with organic sugar can achieve only a 95% certified organic rating. 
 
 There are a few organic clarifying agents, such as the seeds of the drumstick tree (Moringa oleifera) and the edible fruit of Cordia myxa, that could produce 100% certified organic sugar. However, Dr. Stephen Clarke, Director of Technical Services at Florida Crystals, said, "These aids are a substitute for the polyacrylamide materials that we conventionally use in clarification and not for the lime that is used for pH adjustment. The 'natural’ flocculants are basically acidic polysaccharides extracted from succulent plants similar to aloe." Clarke informed The VRG that Florida Crystals tested some organic clarifying agents approximately two years ago, but their performance was “poor and inconsistent." He did say, "Although the potential is there, the real problem is that another crop has to be grown and processed." 
 
 Another reason why bone char is not used in organic sugar production is that its decolorizing function is neither needed nor desired. U.S. organic laws do not have any strict standards regarding the color of organic sugar (like those that exist for conventional white sugar). Unrefined sugar is naturally light tan to brown, and the medium to darker colored sugars are often described as 'golden.' "Retail customers seem to prefer this color and associate it with a more natural, less processed product," stated Tom Hasenstaub, the Organic Program Manager at Florida Crystals. He added that the natural color of organic sugar "has been somewhat problematic to certain industrial customers who are trying to formulate organic processed products to emulate the color profiles of their conventional products." 
 
 At the present time, most organic sugar used in the United States is imported from Paraguay, Brazil, and Mexico. Florida Crystals is the only U.S. producer of organic sugar, with approximately 4,000 acres of rotating organic sugar cane and rice in production and an additional 900 acres planned for the upcoming growing season. However, this quantity meets only 20 percent of U.S. demand. Approximately 80 percent of all organic sugar produced in the U.S. is used in industries manufacturing sugar-containing products, while 20 percent is purchased directly by consumers. 
 
 The table accompanying this article (page 18) lists the brands of organic sweeteners that we have determined to be bone char-free, based on correspondence with the manufacturers. 
 
 Bone Char-Free Sugars Produced By U.S. Companies Company Brand Name C&H; Sugar C&H; Pure Cane Washed Raw Sugar 
 
 C&H; Pure Cane Certified Organic Sugar Cumberland Packing Company Sugar in the Raw Domino Sugar Domino Demerara Washed Raw Cane Sugar 
 
 Domino Pure Cane Certified Organic Sugar Florida Crystals Florida Crystals Demerara Natural Sugar 
 
 Organic Evaporated Cane Juice (granulated and powdered) 
 
 Golden Granulated Evaporated Cane Juice 
 
 Florida Crystals Milled Cane Natural Sugar 
 
 Florida Crystals Certified Organic Natural Sugar 
 
 Great Eastern Sun Sweet Cloud Organic Raw Cane Sugar Hain Celestial Group Hain Organic Brown Sugar 
 
 Hain Organic Powdered Sugar Shady Maple Farms Shady Maple Farms Granulated Maple Sugar Tropical Traditions Rapadura Whole Organic Sugar Wholesome Sweeteners Light Muscovado Sugar 
 
 Dark Muscovado Sugar 
 
 Sucanat (granulated and powdered) 
 
 Organic Sucanat (granulated and powdered) 
 
 NOTE: 100% Pure Beet Sugar is not passed through a bone char filter. 
 
 Today in the United States, all organic sugar is produced from sugar cane. According to Ruthann Geib, the Vice President of the Sugar Beet Growers Association, there is no organic sugar beet production in the United States at this time. Clarke noted, "There are no technical reasons preventing the production of organic beet sugar; it has been done in Europe." 
 
 Watch Out For Bone Char: Tips For Consumers 
 
 On your next trip to the sugar aisle at the grocery, you may notice many bags of sugar that are labeled "100% Pure Cane Sugar." Most likely, this sugar was refined using bone char. In contrast, sugar in bags labeled "100% Pure Beet Sugar" was never passed through a bone char filter. 
 
 Questions soon arise about sugar labeled, for instance, "Granulated Sugar." There is no way to tell based on this phrase alone whether the sugar had been filtered through bone char. The phrase "100% Sugar" is equally ambiguous. Supermarket chains that purchase sugar from a large sugar company but label it as their own may not indicate which type of sugar it is. 
 
 Brown sugar is made by adding molasses to refined white sugar. Therefore, companies that use bone char to produce their white sugar will also use it to produce their brown sugar. The same is true for confectioner’s sugar, which is refined white sugar with added corn- starch. Invert sugar is filtered through the use of bone char. Fructose may but does not typically involve a bone-char filter. Molasses, turbinado, demerara, and muscovado sugars are never filtered through bone char. Evaporated cane juice is also bone-char free. If in doubt about any product, concerned consumers should direct inquiries to the manufacturer. 
 
 For now, The VRG suggests that those who wish to avoid bone char processing altogether purchase organic sugar and consume foods that list only organic sugar or evaporated cane juice as sweeteners. Eating prepack- aged foods and/or restaurant foods that contain refined white sugar will always be questionable. 
 
 When discussing ingredients, information changes and mistakes can be made. Please use your own best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. We encourage everyone to be reasonable and realistic. Use this article with other information to assist you in making personal decisions, not as a standard that you or others may not be able to achieve. Don’t let smaller issues get in the way of larger dietary or ethical decisions. Always be encouraging to others and do the best you can, taking into account that neither you nor the world is perfect. 
 
 For additional information, see ||||| Many foods you might expect to be vegan — from bagels to wine — aren't always free of animal products, and that includes sugar. 
 
 Refined sugar is made from either sugar beets (pictured right) or sugarcane, and while the two taste and look the same, their refining process is different. 
 
 To make sugar from sugar beets, the juice is removed with a diffuser and mixed with additives that make it crystallize. 
 
 However, when the juice from sugarcane (pictured below) is separated from the pulp, it's heated until it crystallizes and then filtered with bone char to remove impurities, giving sugar its white color. 
 
 Bone char comes from animal bones — mostly pelvic bones from cows. The bones are ground and heated to high temperatures, reducing them to carbon, which is used in sugar refineries. 
 
 Sugar that's filtered with bone char doesn't actually contain bone char particles; however, it does come into contact with it, making it not vegan. 
 
 But not all cane sugar is refined with bone char. Some companies use alternatives like granular carbon, which doesn't contain animal products. 
 
 How to find vegan sugar 
 
 If you want to avoid sugar refined with bone char, opt for beet sugar, but keep in mind that these two sugars aren't exactly alike. 
 
 Because sugar beets are a root and sugarcane is a plant, there are trace differences in minerals and proteins, causing them to perform differently in the kitchen. 
 
 Another option to avoid bone char is to purchase certified USDA organic sugar. Bone char isn't on the USDA’s National Organic Program List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances, so the sugar can't be filtered through it. 
 
 "Unrefined," "raw," 'beet" and "evaporated cane juice" are other phrases that indicate bone char wasn't used. 
 
 You can also look for these terms when purchasing other types of sugar — such as brown sugar and confectioner's sugar — because they're often made from refined white sugar. 
 
 However, it's difficult to know what type of sugar is used in prepackaged or processed foods, and the Vegetarian Resource Group (VGR) cautions that contacting the manufacturer might not always be useful because many purchase sugar made from both sugar beets and sugarcane. 
 
 "Common practice at many manufacturers is to store refined sugar from both sources in the same bin, thereby co-mingling the two," Jeffrey Robinson, technical director of American Sugar Refining told VGR. 
 
 If you'd like to purchase sugar that's free of bone char, PETA maintains a list of companies that produce vegan sugar. ||||| A List of Bone Char Free Vegan Sugar Companies 
 
 Sugar comes from two sources – sugar cane and sugar beets. 
 
 Bone char is widely used by the sugar industry as a decolorizing filter, which allows sugar to achieve its white color. The bone char is made from the bones of cattle from countries like Afghanistan, Argentina, India and Pakistan. The bones are sold to traders who then sell them to the U.S. sugar industry. 
 
 Bone char is used in many types of sugar including brown sugar and confectioner's sugar. 
 
 The supermarket brands of sugar obtain their sugar from several different refineries, making it next to impossible to know whether it has been filtered with bone char. Beet sugar is considered vegan because it’s never processed with bone char. 
 
 This bone char filter process is unacceptable to many vegans. 
 
 Even if you’re not vegan, you have reason to be concerned about refined sugars and bone char. 
 
 Due to health concerns, the FDA prohibits the use of bones from the United States’ meat industry which is why the bones are imported. Also, the bones are required to come from animals that die of natural causes, but no one is monitoring that. 
 
 Fortunately there are vegan sugars on the market, but it takes a little effort to purchase. If you can't find vegan sugar at your local market, I recommend going online. Here is a list of vegan sugars available on Amazon. If you know of any others, please share. 
 
 Zulka – an Ordinary Vegan favorite and available at most mainstream grocery stores! 
 
 Wholesome Sweeteners Fair Trade Organic Sugar 
 
 Wholesome Sweeteners Fair Trade Organic Light Brown Sugar 
 
 Wholesome Sweeteners Fair Trade Organic Dark Brown Sugar 
 
 Now Foods Beet Sugar 
 
 Trader Joe's Organic Sugar Evaporated Cane Juice 
 
 Sugar In The Raw 
 
 Rapunzel Rapadura 
 
 Woodstock Farms Organic Pure Cane Sugar 
 
 Florida Crystals Organic Cane Sugar 
 
 Red Path Sugar 
 
 Billingtons 
 
 The Raw Cane 
 
 Sprouts Sugar 
 
 ** It has been brought to my attention that Florida Crystals Organic Cane Sugar may be responsible for pollution problems in Florida. Here are some articles regarding it** 
 
 https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/angry-about-floridas-ruined-waters-fishermen-unite-against-big-sugar-8475700 
 
 https://www.floridacrystals.com/algae-facts-response 
 
 https://www.tcpalm.com/story/news/politics/elections/2018/06/06/florida-sugar-industry-backs-adam-putnam-governor/651146002/ 
 
 Don't miss any of Ordinary Vegan's important lists and free recipes by signing up here. 
 
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– If you're looking to avoid any link between animal products and your food, you might want to take a hard look at the sugar you consume. Cane sugar undergoes a refining process that makes it white, and the process often involves the use of bone char, which typically comes from cows' pelvic bones, Mother Nature Network reports. (Granulated carbon or an ion exchange system can also be used as filters, notes Vegetarian Journal, but the "efficient" and "economical" bone char is the most popular filter.) A process of grinding and then heating them creates the carbon that's used to filter the sugar; a commercial filter can contain as much as 70,000 pounds of char. You aren't actually consuming bone char when you eat the sugar—there's contact, but the end result is free of it—but vegans looking to avoid it need not give up the ingredient. There are a number of animal-free options. If you buy a bag that's certified USDA organic, for instance, bone char won't have been used to make it. Or you can opt for 100% pure beet sugar; its refining process doesn't include char, and the USDA reports that for the last two decades, sugar beets have made up about 55% of domestic sugar production to sugarcane's 45%. Sugar that's labeled "raw" or "unrefined" is also a good bet, as is sugar made with "evaporated cane juice," MNN notes. Product lists like this one from Ordinary Vegan and this one from PETA can offer some help, too. Things get more complicated when you buy foods that already have sugar in them, since makers might mix different kinds of sugar. (You might want to just try cutting down on sugar, period.)