Sugar business, how to create your own sugar production plant. Making sugar from sugar beets at home

The food industry is an industry that is highly resistant to any changes in the market, since the demand for food never falls. One of the most profitable types of business in this area is sugar production. This product is included in the minimum consumer basket, and therefore is very popular among domestic consumers. In this article we will look at the technology for producing sugar from sugar beets and tell you how to organize such a business.

Production Features

Sugar production is a fairly large industrial sector. In our country, granulated sugar and refined sugar are produced by more than 300 enterprises. This high-quality natural food product is an essential commodity, so there is a consistently high demand for it in any economic conditions.

Entrepreneurs who do business in sugar periodically reconstruct their enterprises to increase their productivity. Thanks to this, this market segment is developing rapidly.

According to statistical studies, every citizen of our country consumes about 20 kg of sugar annually. Despite the fact that excessive consumption of this product can negatively affect human health, the demand for it does not fall. Therefore, if you organize sugar production as a business, it will bring good profits.

Such a business, in addition to advantages, also has disadvantages. The most important of them is that mini factories for the production of sugar from beets are tied to the places where raw materials are grown. If you use imported raw sugar, the cost of production increases significantly. Therefore, entrepreneurs mainly use domestic raw materials.

Registration of activities

Are you wondering? The most profitable and affordable option is sugar production. But to organize such a business, you need to obtain permits and register a legal entity. You can also open an individual entrepreneur, but in this case you will not be able to enter into agreements with large organizations.

In addition, it is necessary to bring the production premises into full compliance with the requirements of the fire inspection, SES and other regulatory authorities. All existing standards should be clarified directly with these organizations, since they may differ significantly in different regions. Finished products must fully comply with special GOSTs.

Raw materials

In our country, sugar is produced from sugar beets. But gradually these raw materials begin to crowd out alternative proposals:

• Sorghum stems. This product comes from China. Sugar made from such raw materials is no different from the products familiar to everyone;
• Malt sugar is made from starchy rice. Such raw materials are produced in Japan;
• Palm sap is extracted in Southeast Asia;
• The main suppliers of sugar cane are Brazil and Cuba.

Equipment

Let's take a closer look at each of these options:

• Self-assembly. This is not the best idea, so it should only be implemented as a last resort;
• Ready plant, equipped with old equipment. It can be purchased at an affordable price. At first glance, it may seem that this is a good option, since such enterprises are located near the raw material base and have all the necessary infrastructure. But in fact, the plant may turn out to be a dilapidated enterprise with physically and morally outdated equipment;
• Existing business. This is a good acquisition, but for this you will need a large starting capital;
• New line. Such equipment can be purchased at an affordable price. Manufacturers offer equipment of any power, so you can easily choose the appropriate option;
• To increase the profitability of the enterprise, you can also purchase equipment for the production of refined sugar. This will allow you to expand your product range and increase your company's income.

Room

The production facility must meet all the requirements for food enterprises. To install one unit you will need 30–60 sq. meters. In addition, you need to allocate space for a warehouse for finished products. A certain humidity should be maintained in this room, since sugar strongly absorbs extraneous odors and moisture.

Technological process

Traditional sugar production technology is a rather complex process that requires the use of special equipment.

It consists of the following steps:

1. Purification of raw materials from impurities;
2. Obtaining diffusion juice from sugar beet shavings;
3. Liquid purification;
4. Juice thickening;
5. Cooking massecuite;
6. Drying of finished products;
7. Cooling and packaging.

In other words, the beets are first washed and peeled, after which they are weighed and ground into chips. The prepared raw materials are sent to a diffuser, where sugar is extracted under the influence of hot water. The result is pulp, which can be used as animal feed, and diffusion juice. The liquid is purified and mixed in a saturator with lime. Next, the solution is heated and filtered. Next, the purified juice is evaporated. The resulting syrup is sent to special vacuum devices to obtain massecuite of the first crystallization. The last stage is sugar crystallization.

Sales of finished products

Finished products can be sold wholesale to supermarkets, confectionery factories, catering establishments and canneries.

In addition, you need to establish sales of production waste, such as pulp, molasses and molasses. They can be sold to raw material suppliers or bartered.

The business of selling sugar brings good income to many entrepreneurs. They purchase products from manufacturers in large wholesale and sell them at retail or in small quantities to trading enterprises. If you find such a buyer, there will be no problems with the sale of finished products.

Internet users often ask, ? Try buying sugar in bulk from manufacturers and selling it in large quantities at a small markup. According to experts, this is a fairly profitable line of business, so you can easily earn such a large amount in a month.

Financial calculations

If you competently approach the organization of the supply of raw materials, as well as ensure the sale of finished products, the enterprise can pay for itself in one season. Payback periods largely depend on the cost of the equipment. For example, if you want to open a plant with a productivity of about 100 tons per day, you will have to pay 90–270 thousand euros. Mini-production in the basic configuration costs approximately 18–20 thousand euros. In addition, funds will be needed for renting premises, advertising, wages for workers and transportation costs.

To open an enterprise with a productivity of 6 tons per month, you will need approximately 4–6 million rubles. To organize a serious production, producing 50 tons of finished products per month, you will have to spend more than 10 million rubles.

1. To reduce the cost of finished products, you should purchase equipment whose productivity reaches 1.5–2 tons per day;
2. A mini-enterprise for the production of sugar is especially beneficial for large farms that grow beets;
3. Sugar production does not release toxic gases or other harmful substances. The only problem is noise, therefore, to avoid problems, it is advisable to rent a production facility outside the locality;
4. Sugar packaging will significantly increase business profitability. To do this, you need to develop attractive, recognizable packaging.

conclusions

Sugar production is a fairly profitable business with high profitability. If you organize the work of your enterprise correctly and are able to beautifully present your product at an affordable price, the business will prosper and develop.

Attachments: from 3,500,000 rubles

Payback: from 1 month

In the food industry, there are several branches of production with high profitability: the products are consumed by almost all people. One of the promising areas of entrepreneurship is the production of sugar from sugar beets. Let's consider the advantages and risks of such a business and calculate the possible costs.

Business concept

According to statistical studies, any resident of our state consumes approximately 20 kilograms of sugar per year. The product is in constant demand, and if you set up sugar production as a business, it will bring high income.

More than 90% of sugar in Russia is produced from imported raw materials. Its prices are quite high.

If you use local raw materials, you can significantly benefit from the difference in selling price.

Such production requires decent start-up capital. You need to buy expensive equipment and hire qualified workers. There are two ways to organize a business:

1. Purchase a ready-made plant. You immediately get an established production with high capacity, infrastructure and often well-developed supply channels. However, maximum caution is required, because sometimes they offer crumbling buildings with outdated equipment. To avoid getting into such a situation, use the services of a competent appraiser.
2. Buy or rent the necessary premises and assemble a production workshop yourself from a variety of machines and units. For a novice businessman, this is the most suitable way.

Products can be sold wholesale to hypermarkets, confectionery factories, catering establishments and canneries.

Additional profit will come from the sale of industrial waste: cake, molasses and molasses. They are sold to suppliers of raw materials or through trade.

What is required for implementation

The future workshop must comply with food production standards. Its area is selected based on future production volumes. On average it is 80-100 square meters. The premises are divided into the workshop itself, storage compartments for raw materials and finished products, recreation and hygiene areas for workers.

For this production the following equipment is required:

• washing;
• hydraulic conveyor;
• unit for lifting raw material;
• cake dryer;
• screw press;
• diffusion units;
• slicing machines;
• separator conveyors;
• settling tanks;
• filtration devices;
• evaporating design;
• centrifuges;
• drying and cooling devices;
• vibrating sieve and vibrating conveyor.

The line is serviced by 8 workers. In addition to them, we need a specialist in purchasing raw materials and selling goods, a storekeeper, and a cleaner.

Step-by-step launch instructions

First, the entrepreneur needs to officially register the production. The best choice is an LLC, which allows you to cooperate with large clients, which will increase financial benefits. But at first, you can register an individual entrepreneurship. Taxation system: simplified tax system (income minus expenses), OKVED 10.81.11.

You also need to obtain permits from the fire and sanitary services, product quality and production level certificates.

Processing beets into sugar is a process that takes place in several phases:

1. Purification of raw materials.
2. Grinding. A special unit with sharply sharpened knives is used. Chopped beets are easier to process in the future.
3. Juice extraction using a diffusion unit.
4. Purification and clarification of juice. In special devices, the juice is filtered from sediment.
5. Condensation of juice. On the evaporation unit, the concentration of sugar in the raw material increases to 60-75%.
6. Obtaining sugar crystals. In vacuum devices, the syrup is processed and massecuite is obtained - crystallized sugar.
7. Subsequent processing of the massecuite and separation of white sugar in a centrifuge.

During the production process, in addition to sugar, molasses, cake and filter cake are formed. The first product can be used in the production of alcohol, citric acid, and animal feed. Fertilizers are made from the filtered sediment. The cake is used as a basis for the production of compound feed. All this can serve as an additional source of profit.

Financial calculations

Before starting production, all preliminary calculations must be included in the business plan. With proper planning, you can avoid serious mistakes when starting out.

Starting capital and monthly expenses

The bulk of the initial investment will go towards purchasing a production line and purchasing raw materials. If you plan to open an enterprise with a daily productivity of about 100 tons, you need to contribute at least 10,000,000 rubles to the cost of purchasing equipment. A mini-factory in its basic configuration costs about 1,200,000. But it will not “lift” more than 10 tons per day.

In addition, it is necessary to take into account the following expenses (in rubles):

• paperwork – 50,000;
• rental of premises for the first month – 10,000;
• workers' wages for the same period – 150,000;
• purchase of raw materials (at an average price of 5,000 rubles per ton) – 2,000,000;
• expenses for purchasing a cash register and online accounting – 30,000;
• transport and unforeseen expenses - 40,000;
• website creation and advertising campaigns – 20,000.

In total, at the start, an entrepreneur needs to have 3,500,000 rubles. Monthly expenses will include additional purchase of raw materials, rent, salaries, transportation and unforeseen expenses. They will amount to at least 1,000,000 rubles.

How much can you earn and payback period

Granulated beet sugar in wholesale costs an average of 35 rubles per kilo. If 10 tons of products are produced daily, then 22 shifts per month yield 220 tons of sugar. If you manage to sell everything and avoid losses, then you will gain 7,700,000 rubles. With a competent approach to the supply of raw materials and sales, the enterprise can pay for itself in one month.

Advantages and possible risks

Business in the production of sugar has both pros and cons. The main disadvantage can be considered that a small plant will have to be opened in places where the raw material is grown, otherwise you can go broke on transportation costs.

Additionally, you can master the production of refined sugar in the form of cubes or shaped sweets in the form of stars, hearts, and circles. Sugar figurines are also used as confectionery decorations.

The production of sugar from beets is a highly profitable business. If you organize the operation of the enterprise and are able to sell the products, the profit will be very decent.

Sugar – a food product obtained mainly from sugar beets and sugar cane. Available in the form of granulated sugar and refined sugar. The calorie content of 100 g of sugar is about 400 kcal. The most important indicator of sugar quality is its color, which in Stammer units should not exceed 1.0.

Regardless of the raw material, the sensation of sugar’s sweetness is determined solely by the size of the surface of the crystals and, therefore, by the speed of melting in the mouth. Slowly melting large crystals do not seem sweet enough, while small ones and especially powdered sugar have a sickly sweet taste.

Sugar beet- a biennial plant from the goosefoot family. In the first year of its development, from the initially sown seeds, juicy, sugar-rich root crops are formed with a widely expanded shank, lateral roots and a powerful basal rosette of leaves - tops, but without flowers and seeds. It is these roots, after cutting the tops (together with the upper part of the root head), as well as removing the shank and part of the roots, that serve as raw materials for beet sugar production. The average yield of root crops is 25...40 t/ha, on irrigated lands of Ukraine - over 60 t/ha.

Sugar formation in beets occurs through the initial synthesis under the influence of sunlight of the simplest carbohydrates (glucose and fructose) from carbon dioxide and water in plant leaves containing chlorophyll.

Mass digging of root crops is carried out from the second half of September. The beets delivered by vehicles are stored in piles (piles) until processing. To prevent putrefactive processes, beets in piles are sprayed with lime milk, and in hot weather they are irrigated with water.

Root crops in the piles continue to live, consuming oxygen from the air and releasing carbon dioxide, as well as water vapor.

Cane sugar-raw, produced in India, Brazil and Cuba, is a product of processing juice squeezed from sugar cane stalks. The sucrose content in the juice is 97...98%, and in the cane stems - 12...15%, the yield is 40...60 t/ha.

The pressed cane juice is chemically purified with a small amount of lime, phosphoric acid and sulfur dioxide. In filtered form it enters the evaporation plant. After condensation, the syrup from the evaporation is boiled until sugar crystals are released, which are separated in centrifuges in the form of raw sugar.

Factories that produce sugar They are large, equipped with high-performance production technology. The capacity of individual beet sugar factories for beet processing reaches 6...9 thousand tons per day, and on average - 2.5 thousand tons per day. Beet sugar production is mass, in-line. In it, in a single production flow, the main technological processes and intermediate operations for processing beets are carried out to produce one type of mass marketable product - granulated white sugar. By-products include pulp and molasses.

To protect sucrose from decomposition, all technological processes are carried out at a temperature not exceeding 90...100°C (only in the first evaporation buildings up to 120...125°C), and in an alkaline environment (with the exception of the slightly acidic reaction of diffuse juice).

The duration of the production cycle from the receipt of beets to the receipt of raw white sugar is no more than 12...16 hours, and taking into account the processing of all molasses and yellow sugars in the grocery department - 36...42 hours.

The most important stages of the technology for producing sugar from beets are the following:

• acceptance, storage and supply of beets to the plant;
• cleaning beet roots from soil and foreign impurities;
• grinding (cutting) beets into chips and obtaining juice from them using a diffuse method; juice purification; evaporation of water from juice to obtain syrup; boiling the syrup into a crystalline mass - massecuite I and subsequent separation of this mass by centrifugation into white crystalline sugar and molasses; boiling of molasses into massecuite II, its additional crystallization and centrifugation to obtain yellow sugar and final molasses-molasses - a production waste when working according to the scheme with two massecuite.

In the case of working according to the scheme with three massecuite, the molasses from massecuite II is not final. It is once again boiled into massecuite III, from which, after crystallization and centrifugation, another yellow sugar is obtained and this is molasses as a production waste.

Purification (affination) of the last yellow sugar, dissolution of yellow sugars in juice (clearing) with the return of the resulting solution - clearing for cleaning the syrup.

In addition to these technological operations, auxiliary processes are carried out: obtaining the lime and saturation (carbon dioxide) gas necessary for purifying the juice by burning sulfur sulfation (sulfur dioxide) gas to purify the juice and syrup.

At some factories, additional technological operations are carried out, which are, as it were, a continuation of the main production processes - drying of beet pulp and production of compound feed based on it (enrichment of pulp with additives), microbiological production of citric acid from molasses.

All technological operations are carried out in three main departments of the plant: beet processing, which includes the supply of beets to the plant; juice purification, including evaporation and production of lime, saturation and sulfation gases; product – cooking-crystallization and sulfation.

Extracting sugar from beet chips

Sugar extraction from beet chips is carried out by leaching with warm water and diffusion juice and is based on the phenomena of diffusion and osmosis through the permeable walls of sugar beet cells.

Leaching occurs in diffusion batteries consisting of 12 – 16 diffusers. Diffusers, which are metal cylinders with a capacity of 5-10 m 3, equipped with devices for loading chips and unloading pulp. The contents of the diffusers are heated by steam circulating through the pipes inside the diffuser. The temperature in the diffuser reaches 60 °C or more. At this temperature, the protoplasm of cells coagulates, which facilitates the leaching of sugar from them.

Sugar leaching in a diffusion battery is carried out gradually. Diffusion juice, moving from one diffuser to another, it is gradually saturated with sugar until the sugar content in the juice is as close as possible to the sugar content of beets.

The first diffuser of the battery is loaded with chips and filled with warm water, filling the entire space between the chips in the diffuser.

If the sugar content of freshly loaded beet chips is 18% (it can be a little more or less), then after leaching some of the sugar with water and achieving diffusion equilibrium, the sugar in the chips and water is distributed equally and the sugar content of the chips and the resulting juice becomes the same: it is 9% ( 18:2).

The juice obtained in the first diffuser is transferred to the second, loaded with fresh chips. Upon reaching diffusion equilibrium, the sugar in the chips and juice in the second diffuser is distributed equally, and the sugar content of the juice is 13.5% ((18+9)/2).

From the second diffuser, the juice is transferred to the third, also filled with fresh shavings. The sugar content of the juice reaches 15.75% ((18+13.5)/2), etc. In the last diffuser, the sugar content of the juice differs little from the sugar content of fresh beet chips.

Since there is still 9% sugar left in the shavings in the first diffuser (only 9 of the 18% contained in fresh shavings passes into the juice), to extract the sugar, it is again filled with clean water.

Once diffusion equilibrium is established in the first diffuser, juice is again obtained, although with less sugar content: (9:2 = 4.5%). This juice is then transferred to a second diffuser, where the sugar content of the chips is 13.5%. Diffusion juice here is obtained with a sugar content of 9% ((13.5+4.5)/2). Transferring this juice to the third diffuser, where the sugar content of the chips is 15.75%, a juice with a sugar content of 12.37% is obtained, etc.

Thus, when the operation of the diffusion battery is established, the most concentrated juice is supplied to fresh beet chips, and either low concentration juice or clean water is supplied to more or less sugar-free chips.

This method makes it possible to extract sugar from beet chips as much as possible and obtain high-concentration diffusion juice. The loss of sugar in the pulp is only 0.2 - 0.25%.

The movement of juice from one diffuser to another is carried out due to the slight pressure created when pumping water into the first diffuser.

Recently, diffusion devices have been used in sugar factories. continuous action, replacing diffusion batteries, loaded and unloaded periodically.

On one side, beet chips are continuously fed into the operating diffusion apparatus, which moves towards the water coming from the opposite side. The water continuously washing the chips leaches sugar from it and gradually turns into sugar-enriched diffusion juice, which is removed from the diffusion apparatus. Sugar-free chips – pulp – are also continuously removed from the apparatus.

Purification of diffusion juice

In addition to sugar, the diffusion juice contains (approximately 2%) other substances called non-sugars(salts of phosphoric and other acids, proteins), as well as small suspended particles that give the juice a dark color.

The diffusion juice is purified from suspended particles and a significant part of non-sugars using lime, and carbon dioxide is used to subsequently remove lime from the juice. Lime and carbon dioxide are produced at sugar factories by burning limestone (CaCO 3 = CaO + CO 2); its consumption is 5-6% of the weight of processed beets.

The treatment of diffusion juice with lime (in the form of lime milk) is carried out in cylindrical boilers with mixers - defecators. Under the influence of lime, non-sugars coagulate and precipitate or decompose, forming calcium salts that remain in solution.

The lime-treated (defecated) juice goes to saturator, where it is treated with carbon dioxide. Under the influence of carbon dioxide, lime turns into calcium carbonate CaCO 3, which, when precipitated, carries with it non-sugars.

The juice treated with carbon dioxide (saturated) is filtered mechanical filters. At the same time, filter press dirt containing calcium carbonate, non-sugars and a small amount of sugar (up to 1% of the weight of the dirt) is separated from the juice.

Purified diffusion juice retains a dark color, which is eliminated by subsequent treatment of the juice with sulfur dioxide (it is obtained by burning sulfur). The process of treating juice with sulfur dioxide is called sulfitation.

Evaporating juice, boiling syrup and obtaining sugar

The purified juice goes to evaporation plant, where most of the water is removed from it. The juice acquires a syrup concentration (65% dry matter, including 60% sugar and 5% non-sugars remaining in the diffusion juice after its purification).

The resulting syrup is again bleached with sulfur dioxide and filtered, after which it is boiled in vacuum devices. Boiling of the syrup continues for 2.5 - 3 hours at a temperature of about 75 ° C (under vacuum). During the boiling process, sugar crystallizes. This produces a product containing 55–60% sugar crystals and is called massecuite of the first crystallization. The concentration of dry substances in massecuite reaches 92.5% (of which approximately 85% is sugar).

From the vacuum apparatus, the massecuite is lowered into the mixer, and then sent to centrifuges, where the mother liquor is separated from the sugar crystals. The separated mother liquor is called green molasses. It also contains a significant amount of sugar, as well as non-sugar.

After removing the green molasses, the remaining sugar in the centrifuge is washed with water and steamed. As a result, the sugar turns white. When sugar crystals are washed in a centrifuge, a liquid containing dissolved sugar is formed. sugar - white molasses. It is returned to the vacuum apparatus for additional boiling into the massecuite of the first crystallization, giving white sugar.

Sugar from the centrifuges is sent to the drying drum. Dried sugar is a completely finished product - granulated sugar, containing up to 99.75% pure sugar, calculated on a dry matter basis.

Green molasses is also sent to vacuum devices for massecuite of the second crystallization. At the same time they receive yellow sugar, going mainly to the confectionery industry. With special processing, yellow sugar can be turned into ordinary white sugar.

After isolating the second crystallization of yellow sugar from the massecuite, we obtain molasses, or molasses, being a production waste. The yield of feed molasses is about 5% of the weight of processed beets.

Taking into account the losses of sugar during the production process (most of it is lost in feed molasses - 9 - 14% of the sugar contained in beets), its yield from beets is practically 12 - 13%. At the same time, the consumption of beets per 1 ton of sugar exceeds 7–8 tons.

The sugaring process uses a lot of steam and hot water, usually obtained in a factory boiler plant. The total consumption of equivalent fuel at beet sugar factories (including the consumption for limestone roasting) is 11–12% of the weight of beets processed.

Beet sugar production is characterized by high water consumption for technological processes. It is 20 times the weight of processed beets. Taking into account the use of recycled water, the consumption of fresh water is also very significant and reaches 8 tons per 1 ton of beets.

Use of waste.

The most valuable waste from beet sugar production is molasses, almost half consisting of sugar and also containing other nutrients. As a result, molasses is used as a concentrated feed for livestock (direct feeding or as part of compound feeds). In addition, feed molasses is processed into alcohol, yeast, citric and lactic acid and other products.

By special processing, the sugar contained in it can be extracted from feed molasses, thereby increasing its overall yield from beets and reducing its cost. For this purpose, some sugar factories have built workshops in which feed molasses is desugared.

Another waste is pulp – Sugar-free beet chips. The pulp unloaded from the diffusers is transported using water to storage facilities (pulp pits). Pulp is nutritious and is readily eaten by animals; it is used in livestock farming for fattening livestock. Some sugar factories also have their own cattle feeding stations.

Fresh pulp contains up to 94% water. To increase the transportability, as well as the feed value of the pulp, it is partially dehydrated and thereby increases the content of dry substances in it to 15 - 18%. For long-term storage, the pulp is dried to a moisture content of 10–12%, using flue gases for drying.

Seasonality of beet sugar production factories

Beet sugar factories are characterized by pronounced seasonality of work. Sugar beets usually ripen in the second ten days of September. At this time, they begin digging and transporting it to factories and processing. The factories create a stock of beets, placed in piles, which are processed after digging and removal. When beets are stored for a long time, their sugar content decreases significantly. Therefore, factories strive to process a year’s supply of raw materials in a minimum period of 3-4 months. Extending the shelf life of beets reduces the yield of sugar per unit of raw material and reduces the profitability of a beet sugar factory.

Refined sugar production

About 20...25% of the produced granulated sugar is subjected to refining in order to obtain a purer food product in solid (lumpy refined sugar) or friable crystalline (refined granulated sugar) form.

For industrial processing (refining), granulated sugar with a moisture content of no more than 0.15%, a sugar content of at least 99.75% and a color value of up to 1.8 Stammer units is allowed.

The essence of the sugar refining process is that granulated sugar is dissolved, the resulting syrup is purified and boiled into a crystal.

After casting the refined massecuite into molds and cooling it, high-hardness sugar is obtained - cast sugar. Large pieces of cast sugar are broken into smaller ones or sawn into pieces of the correct shape.

Another method of producing lump sugar is also used - pressing moistened granulated sugar obtained from refined massecuite into molds. That's how they get it pressed sugar, less hard than cast.

Liquid refined sugar is used in the baking industry and ice cream production.

The color of refined sugar must be pure white, without spots; a bluish tint obtained by adding ultramarine is allowed.

The yield of finished refined sugar is about 98.5% of the weight of granulated sugar taken into production. Sugar refineries in Odessa, Sumy and Cherkassy operate all year round.

In Ukraine, the main sugar production is concentrated in Vinnytsia, Khmelnitsky, Kyiv, and Cherkasy regions. Each of them has 30-40 sugar factories, most of them produce sugar seasonally. The yield of white sugar relative to the mass of sugar contained in the beets is called the plant ratio. In the sugar industry it is 78-80%.

On average in industry, the annual sugar yield is 12...13% by weight of beets, therefore, 7...8 parts of beets are consumed for 1 part of sugar produced.

The labor intensity for processing sugar beets is 15...16 man-days per 100 tons of beets.

The total consumption of normal steam (with an average heat content of 2700 kJ/kg) throughout the plant is 50...60% of the beet weight.

The total water turnover is 1800...2000% by weight of processed beets, it can be reduced to 150...300%.

Sugar is a unique product. With his participation, not only confectionery and alcoholic products are made, but also pharmaceuticals, plastics and much more. Not to mention the fact that a significant share of it is bought at retail. Therefore, sugar production is a necessary and in-demand business.

Market analysis

The main advantage of the sugar business is that sales of the product do not have seasonal fluctuations. The production itself is increasing volumes every year. But the market is still far from saturation, because the level of product consumption is also growing. On average, one person eats about 20 kg of it per year. The world leader in sugar production is the United States, and Russia ranks second. This fact suggests that the country has excellent conditions for implementing such a business.

Pros and cons of business

As with any other production, the sugar business has its advantages and disadvantages. The main disadvantage of this type of business is the strong dependence on raw materials, or more precisely, on the places where they can be obtained. In the Russian Federation, sugar is most often made from sugar beets. And it grows mainly in the Southern, Volga and Central districts. If there is a desire to open a plant in other regions, raw materials must be imported, which increases production costs.

More than 90% of the product in Russia is made from imported raw materials. Product prices are relatively high. Therefore, if you organize production using local raw materials, you can significantly benefit from the difference in selling prices.

Another advantage of the product is that it is single-component. That is, only one type of raw material is needed for its production. The consumption of the product is high, and the costs of organizing the plant are relatively small.

Business organization from the formal side

First of all, the business plan of a sugar factory must provide for the registration of a legal entity. The LLC organizational form is much more preferable than an individual entrepreneur, since it will allow you to work on a large scale, collaborating with large organizations.

The following necessary formalities are to bring the production premises into compliance with the requirements of the fire inspection, SES and other authorities. As a rule, this takes a lot of time, effort and money. It is better to check specific standards and requirements locally, as they may differ slightly from region to region.

The next important point that a sugar factory business plan must take into account is that the final product must comply with special GOSTs. Therefore, before starting production, it is necessary to study the requirements of GOSTs:

• Sugar beet. Technical specifications (R 52647-2006);
• Sugar beet. Test methods (R 53036-2008);
• Method for determination of sucrose (12571-86);
• Sugar production (R 52678-2006).

Types of products produced

Sugar can be prepared in a variety of ways to produce a variety of products. The following types are distinguished:

• Refined sugar is highly purified sucrose, which is divided into pieces, usually cubes.
• Sand is sucrose, which has the form of crystals measuring 0.5-2.5 mm.
• Powder – crushed sucrose crystals.
• Raw - individual uncrushed crystals of sucrose.

Raw materials for making the product

In the CIS, sugar was traditionally produced from sugar beets. However, today these raw materials have been replaced by imported offers. Therefore, in addition to beets, which are also grown in Germany, France and the USA, the following raw materials are used:

• Bread sorghum (stems). Its main producing country is China. But the product made from it differs little in its characteristics from sugar from beets or cane.
• Millet or starchy rice. Malt sugar is made from it. The main producer of such raw materials is Japan.
• Palm sap. It is mined in the countries of Southeast Asia.
• Sugar cane. Cultivated mainly by enterprises in Cuba, India, and Brazil.

Sugar production technology

Before opening a mini-factory for the production of sugar, you need to study the technology of its production. This will give you an understanding of what equipment you need to purchase for sugar production. As an example, let’s take beet production, which goes through the following main stages:

1. Extraction. To do this, the raw materials are washed well, then cleaned, the required amount is measured and put into chips. After chopping the beets, the chips are loaded into the diffuser. There, sugar is extracted from this mass using hot water and diffuse juice is obtained. This is not the final product yet, but it contains 15% sucrose. In addition to this, there are also beet shavings and pulp.
2. Diffuse juice purification. To do this, it is mixed with lime milk and put through special purification steps.
3. Removing excess water through evaporation. At the end of this stage, syrup remains, a little more than half of the volume of which is sugar.
4. Crystallization. The sugar production technology is completed by passing the syrup through centrifuges, massecuite distributors, and vacuum devices. Only after this does crystallized sugar remain at the output.

Production equipment

Each stage of production requires its own set of equipment. So, to prepare beets for processing you need the following set of installations:

• beet washing machines;
• stone traps;
• water separator;
• top traps;
• sand traps;
• hydraulic conveyor;
• beet lifting installation.

The main production line consists of:

• dryer for pulp;
• screw press;
• diffusion plants;
• scales;
• beet cutters;
• conveyor with a magnetic separator.

To clear the juice you need to purchase:

• settling tanks;
• sulfitators,
• saturators,
• filters with heating devices,
• defecation apparatus.

The last stage of production goes through the following installations:

• evaporation unit with concentrator;
• centrifuges;
• vacuum devices;
• drying and cooling unit;
• vibrating sieve;
• vibrating conveyor.

Room

The premises for small production must meet all the requirements of food industry premises. The area is selected based on the dimensions of the installations. In addition to the production workshop, the production must have a dry and well-ventilated warehouse for storing products, because sugar absorbs any flavors well.

Putting production into operation

There are several ways to organize and run a plant.

1. Purchase a ready-made mini-plant. However, then it is very important to know the date of opening and commissioning of the plant. If this happened a long time ago, the equipment will be unusable, even if it is in working condition. It is best to invite a specialist to evaluate it. Such an enterprise can cost up to two million dollars. If the enterprise opened after 2000, its price will increase to five million or more.
2. Organization of the plant from scratch. In such situations, a new production line must be purchased. The price of such equipment depends on its production capacity:

• equipment for 10 tons per day – 10-20 thousand dollars;
• equipment for 15 tons every day - 100 thousand dollars;
• equipment for 50 tons per day – 200 thousand dollars.

Special production conditions

The processing of beets into sugar occurs during the so-called campaign, which lasts 3-4 months per year - when the raw materials are ripe. All this time, the equipment works constantly, without breaks, and the staff works in shifts. When the beet processing campaign ends, the equipment must be checked and, if necessary, repairs made.

But the production itself is considered safe, since the work process does not emit dust, toxic gases, etc. The only problem may be high noise when the units operate.

Expansion of production

Most often, young production is focused on the production of granulated sugar, since this is the most popular type of product. Once production is established, the range can be expanded.

Rafinated sugar

First of all, refined sugar production is added to the main line. A Chinese installation with a capacity of 150-200 kg per shift costs approximately 2 million rubles, a Turkish one – up to 7 million rubles. You also need to purchase automatic packaging equipment, which costs at least another 600 thousand rubles.

This sugar can be made in two types:

• pressed: granulated sugar is processed in a centrifuge, pressed, dried and then chopped into cubes of a given size;
• cast: a mass of sugar is loaded into special molds and left until it hardens, after which it is poured several times with pure sugar and washed. This removes the molasses. After this, the pieces are taken out of the molds, dried and cut into cubes of the required parameters.

Cane sugar

Its production is similar to the production of a beet product with some differences:

• The extraction stage is replaced by squeezing the soaked stems on special rollers. This allows you to extract 90% of the sucrose contained in the cane. The juice goes into the pulp trap, then is processed on juice meters.
• Juice purification stage. It is immediately treated with lime without preliminary processing steps, as is the case with beet production.

Molasses and pulp

After purifying the diffuse juice, molasses and pulp remain. The first is excellent feed silage, and the second is feed molasses. They are usually exchanged by barter for raw materials from the agricultural producer. But molasses itself is in demand by a certain category of buyers.

In addition, you can earn extra money by producing candice sugar - very large transparent crystals that are made using special equipment. There are other areas of production that can be established in addition to the production of granulated sugar.

Payback calculation

As practice shows, if you initially properly organize the supply of raw materials and the sale of finished products, the plant can pay for itself in just six months, that is, in one season. But the cost of equipment greatly influences the timing. Equipment from a European manufacturer with a capacity of 20 tons per day will cost at least 90 thousand euros. If you purchase equipment with a capacity of 100 tons per day, you need to allocate about 270 thousand euros for it. If you decide to purchase a mini-plant with a capacity of 12 tons per day, then the basic equipment will cost you 18-20 thousand dollars.

Don’t forget that to conquer the market you need to be able to present your product beautifully. It is necessary not only to develop your own brand, but also to organize the production of clear and beautiful packaging for the product.

The food industry is always the most resistant to competitive changes in the market, since the demand for products in this area is stable. There are several highly profitable industries. One of them is the production of granulated sugar. It can be considered a promising and profitable type of business.

About sugar production

Sugar production is a fairly large branch of the food industry. It has about 320 enterprises. They specialize in the production of products, which are divided into granulated sugar and refined sugar.

As a rule, sugar factories are located near sugar beet planting sites and operate seasonally. The production of granulated sugar at modern enterprises is quite large-scale. Thus, large and well-equipped plants can process up to 6 thousand tons of beets.

Refined sugar production involves the production of lump refined sugar or refined granulated sugar. Such factories are located in large cities and can operate all year round.

Features of sugar

Both refined sugar and granulated sugar are high-quality food products that are characterized by a sweet taste. In addition, it is almost pure sucrose. It can be easily and completely absorbed by the body, allowing you to quickly restore lost energy.

It is a disaccharide that, under the influence of enzymes, breaks down into glucose and fructose. In addition, sucrose easily dissolves in water and forms supersaturated solutions. As the temperature increases, its solubility increases.

Sucrose can be in a crystalline or amorphous state. If we talk about the chemical structure, then sugar is a weak polybasic acid, which, when reacted with alkali or alkaline earth metals, produces compounds called “sugarates”.

It should be noted that thanks to fructose, invert sugar is hygroscopic, therefore it slows down the hardening of bread, prevents the process of jam sugaring, and also prevents marshmallows, marmalade, fudge or other confectionery products from drying out.

Sugar market analysis

The production of granulated sugar always remains promising, since sugar has been and will remain an essential commodity. It is always in stable demand, which does not go away.

It should be noted that the sugar business is characterized by rapid growth. This is due to the reconstruction of factories and an increase in their production capabilities. In addition, one can notice a positive trend in sugar consumption by the population.

So, if you provide statistical data, then a person consumes approximately 20 kg of this product per year, not counting the amount that is included in other delicacies. And although doctors do not recommend consuming a lot of sweets, believing that this negatively affects health, the overall functioning of the body and can lead to diabetes, the demand for sugar does not decrease. That is why a high-quality business plan for a sugar factory is a good opportunity to organize well-thought-out production and make a good profit.

Features of drawing up a business plan for a sugar factory

From a technological point of view, the production of granulated sugar is a complex and labor-intensive business that requires expensive equipment, significant financial costs, and a large number of professional workers. In order to competently enter the sugar industry and successfully implement it, you need to clearly understand all the features of this business. This is why they draw up a business plan for a sugar factory.

This is an extremely important document that can determine the future of the enterprise. It is with the help of it that the profitability of the plant is determined, its ability to receive investment and be in demand, as well as the level to which it will be possible to increase production. Errors in calculations are unacceptable, since opening such an enterprise requires significant investments.

The volume of risks depends on the cost of equipment, rental of premises that will be used as warehouses, as well as on the costs of launching the production itself. What matters is the purchase of the necessary raw materials, obtaining various permits, as well as wages.

Key points in a sugar factory business plan

To open a new sugar production, you need to make calculations depending on the market situation and the specifics of the work process. It should be noted that the business plan is drawn up for at least 3 years and is constantly updated. It is recommended to collect the following information:

• General information about the project and the sugar market. It is necessary to determine the relevance and prospects of opening a plant. Analysis of the market, demand and competitive environment, assumption of profitability are also of great importance.
• Defining mission and strategy. For production to be successful, a mission should be formulated, which is the social idea of ​​the future company, as well as a strategy - an action plan that will help achieve the goals.
• Finding out the list of all necessary documents.
• Financial part. All expenses and planned profits should be determined.
• Technological line for sugar production.
• Sales strategy for finished products.
• Personnel policy.

Raw materials for sugar business

The following raw materials are used to make sugar:

• sugar cane, which is most actively used by enterprises in Brazil, Cuba and India;
• sugar beets - beet sugar production is widespread in the USA, Russia, Germany and France;
• palm sap - used in Southeast Asia;
• starchy rice - malt sugar produced in Japan;
• sorghum stalks - sugar from this raw material is made in China; It should be noted that it has no competitive advantages when compared with beet or cane.

If you indicate the types of sugar by production method, then raw sugar is distinguished. These are individual crystals consisting of sucrose. There is also powdered sugar. These are carefully ground sugar crystals. As a rule, powdered sugar is used in the confectionery industry. The main type can be called granulated sugar. It is sucrose crystals, the dimensions of which are approximately 2.5 mm. If a product is made from a very pure substance, then we talk about refined sugar.

Features of beet roots

Sugar beets are an important component in sugar production. This is a biennial plant that is drought tolerant. In the first year, root crops with a strong root system are grown. The next year, new rosettes of leaves appear, as well as stems with flowers and seeds.

It should be noted that only root crops of the first year of development are used in sugar production. They are fleshy and highly compacted areas of the root system and have a cylindrical shape. The weight of the root crop is on average 200 grams. Its pulp consists of microscopic cells that perform various functions. The outer tissue is protective, called periderm. The main tissue is parenchyma, which accumulates beet juice in its cells. It is rich in sucrose and other substances in dissolved form.

It should be noted the structural feature of beet parenchymal cells. They have a shell that consists of fiber. Its walls have semi-permeable protoplasm with proteins and surround a vacuole containing beet juice. They do not allow dissolved substances to pass through, therefore, in order to extract sugar from beet cells, the protoplasm must be heated to a temperature at which its proteins coagulate.

Features of the chemical composition of beets

The quality and quantity of products obtained from special processing of sugar beets depends on its chemical composition. The ratio of the various components, in turn, depends on the seeds that are used for cultivation, as well as on climatic conditions.

Generally speaking, sugar beets contain 75% water, the rest being dry matter. If we recalculate for 75 kg of water, then 3 kg are retained by colloids, and 72 kg act as a solvent with 17.5 kg of sucrose and 2.5 kg of non-sugar compounds. There is an important indicator - the purity of beet juice. This is the percentage of sucrose content and the amount of dry matter.

As a rule, the first number (this indicator is sometimes also called sugar content) ranges from 15-22%. This means that the average sucrose content in beets is 17.5%.

If you indicate the content of dry substances in the finished product, then their share in granulated sugar is 99.75%, and in refined sugar it is even higher - 99.9%.

Production stages

The production of granulated sugar is a unique process, which is characterized by the following stages or stages:

• supply of sugar beets, their cleaning from various impurities;
• obtaining sugar chips and diffuse juice from it;
• purification of the resulting liquid;
• thickening juice by evaporation;
• boiling massecuite and obtaining sugar in the form of small crystals;
• drying and cooling of granulated sugar with its subsequent storage.

Thus, the process of producing sugar from beets includes washing and peeling them, weighing them and cutting them into chips, which are placed in a special diffuser. Here, sugar is extracted from plant matter using hot water. In this case, diffusion juice with sucrose, as well as pulp, is obtained. These are beet chips after the extraction stage, which can be used to produce animal feed. Next, there are stages that allow you to purify the diffusion juice and obtain sugar crystals.

How are sugar crystals obtained?

After the diffusion juice is obtained, it is mixed with lime in a saturator. Next, the resulting solution is heated and carbon dioxide is passed through it.

As a result, filtration takes place, which produces “purified” juice. Sometimes ion exchange resins are used at this stage.

Then this “purified” juice is evaporated, obtaining a syrup containing 65% sugar, and crystallization is also carried out in special vacuum devices at 75 ° C. In this case, a massecuite of the first crystallization is obtained.

It is a mixture of sucrose and molasses that goes into a mixer, massecuite distributor and centrifuge. The sugar crystals that remain in the latter device are bleached and acted upon with steam, resulting in the usual crystalline sugar.

It should be noted that the production of sugar from cane is characterized by a similar technological process. The difference is the absence of an extraction stage (the cane is simply squeezed out), as well as the method of purifying the resulting juice (it is treated with significantly less lime).

Equipment for the production of sugar from beets

To establish sugar production, you need to purchase a set of specialized equipment. Using it, you can prepare beets for the further technological process.

This set of equipment includes:

• sugar lifting plant;
• hydraulic conveyor;
• sand, tops and stone trap;
• water separator;
• beet washing machine.

When specifying sugar production equipment, the main line of machines includes the following:

• conveyor equipped with a magnetic separator;
• beet cutter;
• scales;
• diffuse installation;
• screw press;
• drying for pulp.

In addition, filters, heating devices, saturators and sulfinators, as well as settling tanks and defecation apparatus are used in the production of sugar. The equipment that is considered the most energy-intensive is a vacuum apparatus, centrifuges and evaporation units with concentrators. If maximum automation of production is required, then you should purchase a vibrating container, a vibrating sieve, and a cooling and drying unit.

Features of purchasing equipment for the sugar business

Sugar production equipment can be purchased in several ways. You can carry out an independent assembly from different machines (including non-specialized ones), buy a line of devices or an entire plant that has already been in use, purchase a ready-made sugar production business or completely new devices. The first option is the most economical, but can only be used by people who are perfectly versed in technology.

A significant advantage of purchasing an inactive sugar factory is the developed infrastructure and developed network of suppliers. But you should also remember a serious disadvantage - it may have worn-out equipment and be simply unsuitable for profitable production.

If you buy a new ready-made sugar factory, you should carefully weigh everything, because the costs are quite large. Attention should be paid to the quality of the equipment, since the previous owner could have greatly depreciated it even over several years of operation. For an optimal assessment of the technical condition of machines, it is better to consult a specialist.

Opening a sugar factory on your own is difficult due to too high material costs.

Features of the organization of sugar production

The best option is to organize a business that involves setting up production with a focus on a small city or even a separate urban region.

At the same time, a mini-factory for the production of sugar from beets can become an integral part of a profitable business. Subsequently, it can be expanded, reaching a higher level and increasing production and sales volumes.

It should be noted that almost all sugar production is automated, if you do not take into account the harvesting and primary processing of root crops. That is why the issue of recruiting staff is not a priority.

The most important thing in this matter is high-quality equipment, which would be characterized by durability and reliability, as well as a high level of production capabilities.

In addition, it must be remembered that when planning a sugar factory, one should take into account not only investments and income from the sale of main products, but also profit from the sale of waste generated during the production process.

If you take into account all the features of the sugar business, good earnings are guaranteed.