The Sugar Mill: Origins and Evolution Part 2

Sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) is a perennial grass of the family Poaceae. It is primarily cultivated for its juice, from which alcohol (through fermentation and distillation) and sugar (through dehydration and refining) can be obtained. Most of the world’s sugarcane is grown in subtropical and tropical areas.

It is commonly accepted today that sugarcane originated in Papua, New Guinea, where it was initially domesticated. The plant was then taken to other lands by traders, where its sweet virtues quickly made it a sought-after commodity.

It is also commonly accepted that around 10,000 years ago, the original inhabitants of Papua did not have tools to process the cane, meaning that they likely chewed it raw to extract the juice, which was consumed as- is (Noël Deerr, The History of Sugar: Volume One).

Not much written history exists that documents the early extraction of the juice for the purpose of dehydration and formation of sugar crystals until the publication of De Materia Medica, a pharmacopoeia of medicinal plants and the medicines that can be obtained from them, which was written between the years 50 and 70 of the current era by Pedanius Dioscorides, a greek physician in the Roman army. This is the oldest record documenting the existence of crystalized sugar, which was used at the time to “treat indigestion and stomach ailments.”

How did people manage to extract the dissolved sugar from the juice? The answers to this question are at the core of this series. so join us, as we explore this fascinating topic!                     

      The Sugar Mill: Origins and Evolution 

                                        Part 2: The Pole Press

The Pole Press likely predates the Mortar and Pestle Mill described in Part 1 of this series.  Its simplicity makes it an ideal candidate for individual households or groups of families to have and operate for their own needs.  Unlike the animal-powered Mortar and Pestle Mill, however, the Pole Press requires solely human labor and the amount of sugarcane processed is low, with an equally-low yield of sugarcane juice, therefore making it a bad fit for commercial operations. The Pole Press consists of a large, firm base (usually the trunk of a large tree), through which a hole has been bored.  A pole of smaller diameter than the hole is then inserted through and is allowed to move up and down within the hole.  Often times a wedge is cut out of the tree trunk, near the bottom of the hole, to provide a flat surface for the sugarcane to rest on.

As the pole is raised, a stalk of sugarcane is placed on the space beneath the pole, such that when the pole is brought down, the downward leverage results in enough pressure to crush and squeeze the juice from the cane.As the juice is squeezed out of the sugarcane, it is collected into a vessel, either by guiding the juice through grooves cut into the trunk or by using other surfaces as guides.

This press employs the principle of leverage, so the longer the pole used, the easier it is for the operator to apply enough downward pressure on the sugarcane stalk.

While the original implementations of the Pole Press relied entirely on naturally-occurring materials, it is common to see modern approaches built using contemporary ones, like metals and plastics, but the mechanics are still the same.There are many places around the world where the Pole Press is still employed today for small-scale sugarcane juice extraction.  As of 2010, this method was in use by the Cuna Indians on Isla Río Tigre, San Blas Islands in Panama.  The photos on the opposite page were taken at a small villa in the Guayas Province in Ecuador.

                                              Sugar Mill Spotlight

Villa Sugar Mill, at Galley Bay Hill (part of the Galley Bay Resort) on the Caribbean island of Antigua.