What is Bagasse?
Bagasse is is remains of sugarcane and sorghum once they are crushed. It is used as a biofuel and also in the paper and construction industry.
For every 10 tonnes of sugarcane which is crushed, 3 tonnes of bagasse is produced and typically those three tonnes are thrown away after being produced as a waste material.
Its not the cleanest energy source as the sugarcane processes is harsh but bagasse products are now showing up in a few different industries. For instance bagasse is sometimes used as a fuel source for sugar mills and can sometimes produce even more energy than needed, so the mill will end up supplying energy to the electricity grid.
The largest bagasse plant is operated by a Florida sugar company and produces enough energy for some sixty thousand consumers.
In trendy markets sugarcane bagasse is replacing Styrofoam and other materials for disposable food containers. This is great, as it is renewable, compostable, recyclable and microwave safe. The containers and cups are high quality and have a textured natural feel to them. Next time you get a cup of joe in a nice pretty cup, ask what was it made from and you may be surprised by the answer.
Considering how much of our fast food junk just gets thrown out, and much of it on the ground, imagine the good we could do by switching even a tiny portion of our garbage to a cleaner source. The sugarcane industry worldwide is huge and if restaurants and cafe’s starting embracing this renewable source, only good could come out of it.
