The Agribusiness of Making Molasses

The agribusiness of making molasses

Sweet Sorghum is syrup made from the juice of Sorghum Cane and it is evaporated down to a thick molasses. In years past it was an important source of sweetener. It came into prominence during the 1850's in the United States. By 1888 total US production was 20,000,000 gallons. An 1896 encyclopedia listed the main states that produced sorghum were Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, and Missouri. It was something that many farms grew to some extent. Many just planted enough for their own use while others grew it as a cash crop.

Historically, one farmer that had a mill and evaporating pan, and the farmers in the area would bring their cane to them to be squeezed and cooked into syrup. With the decline of the family farm and the easy access to other sweeteners most of these operations ceased to exist and only a few die-hards still produce this delicious syrup. One such location is the Byford farm in Cannon County.

It is believe that Allen Byford put together his evaporating pan in 1940. Over the years he has served as the focal point and master of the molasses for cane farmers on Short Mountain. He handed down his knowledge to his children and then to his grandchildren. This experience is important, as this person is who determines the molasses has reached the ever-so-right consistency and drains it from the evaporating pan to be poured into quart jars.

Allen Byford pasted away as we entered the new century, but his memory lingers on in the eerie night-light caused by the steam from the evaporating pan he created. Allen's grandson Greg Byford now judges the molasses. Grandson-in-law Mike Green spoke of affection referring to Allen as "Papa" and provided photos of Allen that Mike kept in the cab of his truck. Mike wasn't there just to help, to him and everyone there, it was a social event aseveryone sat around as campers would around a camp fire and chatted the night away while others labored keeping the mill stuffed with cane.

It seems in days past about every iron foundry produced a cane mill. The designs seem to all be about the same. A Iron frame from which two or three (usually three) rollers were mounted. The smaller mills were usually horse or mule powered while the larger mills were belt driven. Some of the very early mills were made entirely of wood and probably made by the farmer or local blacksmith.

On the Byford farm the mill is set up to be powered by a horse or mule. However, the mule has been replaced with an Allis-Chalmers tractor. One person drives the tractor around and around pulling the pole to run the mill. Others feed cane into the mill which squeezes the juice from the stalks.

You may have seen Sorghum Cane growing in Cannon County and not realized it. It looks much like corn without the ears. Instead of tassels on top like corn, it has clusters of many seeds. The seeds are small and round about 1/16" in diameter. It grows 6 to 12 feet tall and 1 to 2 inches in diameter at the base of the stalk. After the cane matures (90 to 120 days) it must be harvested. This is the most labor intensive part of the whole process. Harvesting is done by striping it of its leaves by running a thin bladed stick swiftly down each side of the stalk. Knocking the leaves off as the stick goes buy. Then the "head" of seeds is removed. Next the stalk is cut off close to the ground. All that is left is a stalk 5 to 11 feet tall, 1 to 2 inches in diameter at the end closes to the ground and about a 1/2 inch in diameter at the end closest to where the seeds were.

The cane is then taken to the mill on the Byford farm. It is hand fed into the mill a few stalks at a time. The rollers in the mill crush the stalks, which squeezes the juice out of the cane. The juice is collected into a holding container before cooking.

After enough juice is collected to fill the first section of the evaporator pan it is strained to remove pieces of stalk that might have been left in the juice. It is poured into the first compartment of the evaporating pan and a fire is built under the pan using wood. The pan is divided into compartments so that several "batches" can be cooked at one time facilitating a continuous cooking process. The juice must boil to cause evaporation and thicken the juice.

While the first batch is cooking, more cane is being squeezed and juice collected. When enough for another batch is collected the first batch is moved into the second compartment and the second batch is poured into the first compartment. The process is repeated eventually filling all compartments in the pan.

When the juice reaches the last compartment it must be watched carefully so that it is removed at just the right time. This is the part that takes practice and know-how. This knowledge, the skill of recognizing the right moment to remove the molasses from the pan is what has been pasted from Allen Byford to his grandson Greg. Remove it too soon and it will not be done. Wait too long and it will be thick and have a strong taste.

The whole time that the juice is cooking, until the last compartment or two, it must be skimmed. This involves running a skimmer across the top of the cooking juice to remove the skim that forms on top which is the impurities cooking out of the juice.

Once the molasses is done it is drained from the pan, it is then bottled in quart mason jars. Different folks have their favorite uses. I enjoy molasses over hot biscuits with butter on them or in cookies.

Smile, you’re in Cannon County