THE PICKING TABLE by R. A. McGinnis Sugar from Raffinose In another item in this issue it is Sugar Co., has been put into full use formed by undescribed means from noted that The Great Western Sugar at the Kitami factory, to make sucrose the washed material. The enzyme acts Co. has acquired, by arrangement with from the raffinose in the juices. On a as a catalyst, and is not used up, but is the Japanese, the most significant de­ weight basis the raffinose contains gradually lost by solution and attrition velopment in the Steffen process in about 60 percent of sucrose. The of the pellets. the last 40 years. The "great moments" galactose which is formed at the same in the Steffen process can be regarded time is a reducirrg sugar which is not In operation the cells of the trough as 1) the invention of the cold process precipitated by lime, but is destroyed are filled with pellets, and the juice by Carl Steffen in 1883, 2) the de­ by it. travels through by gravity, held at velopment of the hot process some 20 This new development, if assumed temperatures between 45 and 50°C. · years later, and 3) the development of to be economical, is a natural for a The molasses to be treated is diluted the continuous process in 1932. Steffen factory in a region where there to 30 rds and held at about 5.2 pH. This most recent step we owe to is high occurrence of raffinose, as is As the pellets in the last cell become exhausted, the screen is removed from those brilliant technologists, our broth­ the case at the Billings, Montana fac­ ers in Japan, and the first revelation of the top of the separator, and about tory. The rapid buildup of raffinose in half of the pellets is allowed to flow this was made in a paper presented at the recirculated saccharates requires the 1971 meeting of the CITS in out of the cell. These pellets are dis­ frequent molasses discards. These dis­ carded. This operation is continued Brussels, and later reprinted in English, cards are required because of the authored by T. Yamane, in Sucre upstream, each cell discharging half of lowered purities of the saccharates, its pellets to the downstream cell To Beige, 90, 345-348, 1971. The process and the serious interference with crys­ involves the splitting of raffinose with the head end cell 50 percent of new tallization caused by this buildup. pellets are added. With a two hours the aid of an enzyme to form, par­ Thus application of the new process to tially, sucrose. juice retention time, the splitting of molasses to be Steffenized should elim­ the raffinose is about 85 percent In this connection, the beet-sugar inate this accumulation of raffinose completed, with resulting raffinose re­ chemist immediately remembers that a and the necessity for molasses discards, cycle about 15 percent. number of years ago, the most accu­ as well as permitting recovery of the rate method for determining sucrose in additional sugar. Using this process the Kitami fac­ tory was able to increase its slice rate low purity materials was the so-called Since apparently it is not possible from 1800 to 1900 tons per day. This "double-enzyme" method, which to patent the action of an enzyme, avoided the errors inherent in the equipment for the process has been was because of the decrease in molasses recirculated through the sugar end. Clerget methods, particularly when covered by U.S.P. 3 664 927 (may 23, raffinose was high. "Top yeast ex­ 1972, Shimizu, et al.) and we are told Although it is not so stated, it appears tract", which contained the enzyme that the process will not work satis­ that the factory works only its own invertase, was added to one portion, factorily unless this patented equip­ molasses. Formerly when the raffinose and this converted the sucrose to ment is used. content of the molasses built up to glucose and fructose, and changed the about 8 percent it was necessary to raffinose to melibiose and fructose. A The reaction vessel is a long, U­ discard molasses until the house was second portion was treated with "bot­ shaped trough, bearing at least a visual clear. During a full campaign of use of tom yeast extract," which contained similarity to a popular preliming unit. the new process, the raffinose content both invertase and melibiase. In this It contains a number of compartments, ,remained essentially constant at be­ protion, the invertase did the same job but the separators go all the way to the tween 3.0 and 3.8 percent, without as in the first portion, but in addition, bottom of the trough, and are topped any discards, over the 7 5-days cam­ the melibiase changed the melibiose to with screens through which the treated paign. glucose and galactose. The true sucrose juices can flow without passing the In addition there was improved content was then estimated by solving enzyme-containing pellets. The trough sucrose extraction of unstated quan­ two simultaneous equations involving is water-jac keted, and a longitudinal tity, and no more needle-shaped cry­ the final polarizations of the two central shaft bears agitators for each stals. portions. The method was reluctantly compartment. The juices to be treated At least two important questions abandoned when the only supplier of enter at the head end, and overflow are not answered in the published the bottom extract-Wallenstein Lab­ through the screens from one com­ materials : (1) can you make your own oratories"-ceased production. partment to the next. pellets? and (2) what are the eco­ There is still another enzyme, The enzyme, o. -galactosidase is se­ nomics? a-galactosidase, however, which splits creted by the myceliurn (mold) Mor­ Presumably the answers are favor­ raffinose directly into sucrose and tiere/la uinacea, which is manufactured able, at least when there are no roy­ galactose, without affecting the su­ by growing it, submerged in a culture alties to pay, as the process has worked crose. medium at 30°C, for 70 to 80 hours, well at Ki tami. Great Western is to be The new process which was de­ with aeration and agitation. The mold complimented for its bold technolog­ veloped by H. Suzuki of the Hokkaido is then made into pellets which are ical approac h. •\ Buman Brown, formerly vice-president NEW BEET SUGAR FACTORIES FOR RED RIVER VALLEY of operations of Amalgam ated Suga r Co., and Mrs. O'Rourke, as attorney. Min-Dak Far mers Co operative, Wahpeton, North Dakota ,l The trend observable over recent Ground was actually broken on In support of this application ap­ years of closing beet-sugar factories September 21. The construction con­ peared Chas. Brannan, attorney, James ii appears like to be reversed. There is a tract with B.M.A. guarantees 80% ex­ Link, Co-op president, V. Johnson, at­ definite possibility that four more traction, with 15.25% beets of 86.5 torney, and John Bunker, president, beet factories may be built, if the ne­ purity. A reservoir for water supply Holly Sugar Corp. [. cessary acreage allotments are secured, for the factory is presently under con­ The financing would involve pur­ Y. and in some of the instances this seems struction. chase by each farmer member of four quite probable - all in the Red River An allocation of 50,000 acres was shares of stock for each acre, similar to Valley area of North Dakota and Min­ requested. the Hillsboro proposal. Again, construc­ nesota. The Co-op has retained the Max­ tion financing would be with the aid of Hearings were recently held in Wash­ Exec firm as consultant for start-up, two banks, and the B.M.A. or"ani­ ington, D. C., to consider new acreage operation, and management. This firm zation. allotments by the Sugar Division, under includes True Morse, former under­ The factory would be located at Section 302 (b) of the Sugar Act. secretary of Agriculture, Dennis O' Wahpeton, which is 50 miles south of The applicants for acreage included Rourke, former general counsel of the Fargo, North Dakota. The factory the Red River Valley Coop., Inc. of U.S.D.A. and chairman of the board, specifications would be similar to those Hillsboro, North Dakota; the Min-Dak Holly Sugar Coro., Larry Myers, R. J. of the Hillsboro unit, but plans are Farmer Cooperative, Inc., of Wahpeton, Tingley, former agricultural manager based on 13 tons of beets per acre, North Dakota; the Southern Minnesota of Holly, John Warwick, former vice­ compared with 12.5 for Hillsboro, and Beet Sugar Cooperative of Renville, president and treasurer of Holly, S. the 16% sugar as compared to 15.25%. Minn.; the Appleton Beet Growers Association of Applet5m, Minn., and the Utah-Idaho Sugar Co., Columbia DRAYTON (A-CJ Basin, Washinr,ton, for additional acre­ age for its two Washington factories. Red River Valley Corp., EAST GRAND FORKS (A-CJ Hillsboro, North Dakota I 8 ;I This organization was represented by Mrs. Rouss (O'Rourke), and was .CROOKSTON (A-CJ supported by J. E. Brunsdale, Co-op president; Larry Myers, former Sugar Division director; Dr. Reinhard Wolfe, HILLSBORO of the German firm Braunschweische Maschinenbau Anstalt (B.M.A.), and an official of the Bank of North Dakota. To finance the factory, each of the 285 cooperative members would pur­ MooRHEAD cA-cJ Minnesota chase for each acre of heets, (a) one share of common stock at $250, (b} one share of Class A preferred stock at $105, (c) one share of Class B prs-­ ferred at $75; and (d} one share of Class C, at $76.