Sugarcane and Its Bioproducts – A Renewable Resource for a Novel Bioeconomy

Sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) existed in Papua New Guinea, for more than 12,000 years from where it spread to southeast Asia and India. Sugarcane which forms a major source of sugar and other sweetening agents for human consumption is one of the most abundantly grown crops across the globe which is used in sugar industries mainly for sugar production. Sugar, a traditional sweetener, contributes to the colour, texture, and flavour of food. Even in the Indian market, different types of sugars with various qualities are available meeting the needs of different customers. Growing instability in the market due to competition and imbalances in the demand-supply position of sugar, global surplus, sugarcane vis a vis sugar price etc, sugar industries urge the formation and application of new tools to improve its efficiency, potential, and productivity. Through innovative processes and products, sugar plants can develop competitiveness to compete in this continuously changing global market position. Hence, there is a need to explore other possibilities like industrial exploitation of by-products obtained from sugarcane. Besides sugar production, the by-products produced in the sugar plant during various stages of processing are press mud which is sent to farms to be used as fertilizer, ash to brick industries, molasses to distilleries, bagasse which is used either as a fuel for boiler or sent to paper industries and effluent which is used as irrigation water after treating it in an effluent treatment plant. Global warming and the harmful effects of greenhouse gas emissions have urged the use of biofuels and the sugar industry holds the promise of being a hub of it. Therefore in this aricle, an attempt has been made to review the production process of sugar at the industrial level and the potential and efficient use of by-products of sugar industries. In continuation, different feedstocks, and process for bioethanol production have been discussed.