Tucked away here on South Africa's North Coast, in the town of Stanger, is Illovo Sugar Limited's Gledhow sugar mill. One of the country's two main sugar producers, Illovo is a multi-national, publicly-traded corporation that sells a variety of products from potable and denatured alcohol to sugars and syrups. Fragrant with the sugary smell of success, Gledhow is one of South Africa's 16 sugar mills. Though Illovo grows some sugar cane, eighty-five percent of its 10.8 million tons is purchased from private, local growers.

With a total of 1.2 million tons, Illovo's operations yield 44.1% of South Africa's total sugar production.

Refined over hundreds of years, sugar production is a complicated, mechanized process. It begins with a rigid schedule that dictates when individual growers may deliver their cane. Starting no earlier than 24 hours before the delivery date, farmers start controlled fires in their fields to quickly remove the grassy leaves from the stalk. The cane stalks are then delivered to the mill for processing and eventual refinement.

Upon arrival at the mill, the sugar cane is weighed - with one load isolated and tracked to determine the value of the entire delivery. The sample load is then chopped into 3-inch lengths and shredded into a straw-like consistency.

At this point the shredded cane is tested by the South African Sugar Association, an independent testing service, which determines the cane's sucrose level, or "recovery" as it is termed in the industry. The cane's value increases as the sucrose recovery increases. The Gledhow mill has an average recovery of 12.7 percent, which in South Africa is considered low, though it would be impressive in a country like Pakistan where 11 percent is deemed high.

After testing is completed the cane straw is then "diffused" - much the same way coffee is percolated - with steaming hot water used to remove all the sucrose from the stalk. The fibers are then pressed six times to ensure that as much sucrose as possible is released. Dark brown in color, the sugar juice is a mixture of water, sucrose and other impurities. It is heated and milk of lime added to neutralize the acids that are later removed with other sediments.

The resulting juice is then reduced by evaporation, accomplished in a series of vacuums. It is at this stage that sugar crystallization begins and "seeds" or small crystals of sugar are added to encourage the rest of the evaporating mixture to form large crystals. The mixture is then passed into vacuum pans, where slow stirrers mix the remainder as it cools. It is then passed into a centrifuge which separates molasses from the crystallized raw sugar, which is later dried, refined, packaged and shipped to Illoco's customers worldwide.

The greatest consumers of sugar are soft drink and candy manufacturers. The molasses is used to make animal feeds and chemicals.

Throughout the milling process sugar juice and crystals are discriminated and ranked based on their color with pure white sugars having more value than their darker cousins. The juices are compared to samples in the mill with each color receiving a number rank. Likewise highly refined white sugar crystals are ranked on a color scale with the lighter whites receiving a lower score and darker brown sugars earning a higher one. Typically white refined sugar receives a rating of 35-40, while brown sugars get a 1350.

Sugar is also graded into three categories: A, B and C, based on the size and shape of its crystals. The only sugar that reaches the consumer is the A grade, with the B's and C's returning to the process for melting and reuse.

Using a process where little is wasted, and virtually every fiber and juice used and reused, sugar cane production creates the very fuel needed to run the entire mill, which keeps sugar's retail cost relatively inexpensive and one of the sweetest deals on the spice rack.