Ethanol production: A saviour for sugar industry

Abstract

 Sugarcane is a widely grown crop that contributes significantly to the global agricultural economy, including India. Sugarcane cultivars primarily fall into two categories: thin and hardy (S. barberi and S. sinense), and thick and luscious (S. officinarum). The aristocratic S. officinarum has huge, soft-rinded stalks and its juice is high in sugar, primarily sucrose. India produces between 25 and 32 million tonnes (MT) of sugar each year, accounting for 15–17% of global sugar production. In India, 55 cultivars have been approved for commercial production on 4.9 million hectares (Mha) land, yielding an average of 69.5 tonnes per hectare (t/ha). To avoid surplus sugar production, Indian government implemented a new biofuel policy in 2018 that allowed ethanol manufacturing directly from sugarcane juice. This approval allowed it to be blended with gasoline, saving a significant amount of money on crude oil imports. Crushing sugarcane stalks and obtaining sugar-rich cane juice is the first steps in making ethanol from sugarcane. Sugar distillery industries are robust and self-sustaining because of the use of by-product resources such as molasses and bagasse. This article aims to provide insights into the current changing global scenario of sugarcane production and opportunity of industrial ethanol production directly from sugarcane juice that would be a savior for the sugar industry.