Yiwu brown sugar has a reliable history of more than 700 years. Zhu Danxi, a great physician in the Yuan Dynasty (Yiwu), recorded the use of brown sugar to treat diseases in his medical book "To Seek the Root before Disease". During the reign of Shunzhi in Qing Dynasty, Jia Weicheng introduced and popularized the technology of extracting sugar from xylose cart, which made the sugarcane production in Yiwu enter the commercialization track and can be sold as a commodity. According to the genealogy of Jia's family in Yangchuan, the extraction of sugar from xylose carts in Yiwu began in the Qing Shunzhi period (1644- 16 1). The peak period was in 1930s-1940s. In 35 years of the Republic of China, the planting area of sugarcane was 66,700 mu, and the output of brown sugar was about 1 10,000 tons. Before liberation, production fluctuated frequently due to the influence of sales and policies. 1950 planting 216000mu,195457900mu,19661.71000mu. 20,000 mu in the 1970s. In the 1980s, the planting area was stable at about 30,000 mu. Thanks to the popularization of improved varieties such as Jiangxi sugarcane 1 and Sichuan sugarcane1and plastic film mulching, the yield per mu of fresh sugarcane increased from 2000-2500 kg in the early days of liberation to over 5000 kg, and the total output increased by 1.5 times. With the development of modern sugar factories, sugarcane is mostly used for machine-made white sugar, and the output of brown sugar is correspondingly reduced. 1988, purchased by the supply and marketing department 1525 tons. In addition to supplying the local market, it is mainly sold to Hangzhou, Ningbo, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Anhui and other places. The traditional processing method of Yiwu brown sugar is to squeeze sugarcane juice with a wooden cart pulled by cows and cook it in an iron pot burning wood to make sugar. Because it has not been purified, it retains more nutrients, and its nutritional value is better than sugar. According to analysis, every 500 grams of brown sugar contains calcium 190 mg, which is 9 times that of white sugar; It contains 300 mg of phosphorus and 38.5 mg of iron, both four times as much as sugar; Glucose content is 19 times that of white sugar; Protein and human body need trace elements such as manganese and zinc more than sugar. In addition, it also contains carotene, riboflavin and nicotinic acid. Has the effects of relaxing muscles and tendons, promoting blood circulation, expelling cold, removing dampness, warming stomach and strengthening body. Maternal food can restore vitality and enrich milk. Patients with acute hepatitis can take brown sugar properly, which can reduce protein consumption in the body and regenerate liver cells.
Before 1960' s, the tool for squeezing sugar water was a cart for pulling sugar by cows, that is, a wooden cart for pulling sugar by cows. Two hardwood rollers, about 60 cm in diameter and 120 cm in length. The upper end of the drum is made of two closed gears, and a long lever rotates at the same time under the traction of cattle. Sugarcane is fed from the gap between two wooden rollers. With the continuous rotation of the drum, the sugar stalks are crushed, and the sugar water is twisted out and flows into the sugar tank along the sink. Now it is a mechanized sugar press to squeeze sugar, but people are still used to calling it "squeezing sugar". Boiled sugar is also called "fried sugar". The twisted sugar water can only be turned into brown sugar if it is poured into a pot and boiled. This is a necessary process for making brown sugar, and it still maintains the traditional process.
There are five or six sugar cans lined up in a row, with diameters from large to small. First, put the sugar water into the biggest pot and cook it in the first bite. Boiled sugar water will have a thick layer of sugar foam, which must be cleaned up with a bag, otherwise it will affect the quality of sugar, especially the color of sugar. When it is just right, it will be scrapped if it is not cleaned, so it is also a technical job. The most important technical job is to wait for sugar. After catching sugar bubbles, sugar water plays the second and third roles in turn, mainly to let the water evaporate slowly. When the sugar water evaporates for a certain time, the suffering sugar water turns golden yellow, and the pot is full of thick and round bubbles. At this time, under the observation of the eyes, the sugar master gradually lifted the thick sugar into the small pot behind, and several workers kept stirring the sugar pot with a long-handled iron spoon to prevent the thick sugar from pasting the bottom of the pot. When all the thick syrup is put into the last pot, the sugar master will dip a little sugar with his forefinger, taste it and see that it is almost enough. Then he will scoop the boiled syrup into a rectangular wooden trough bed and make it into fine brown sugar.