Sugar is produced from the evaporation of the juice that is extracted from the crushed cane. This is widely used as a sweetener in food and beverages. Interestingly, in a country like India, sugar is also emerging as an index of upward mobility. For instance, as incomes rise in rural India, consumers migrate from the consumption of gur and khandsari, which are alternative sweetners, towards sugar. The principal portion of sugar sold within India is loose and unpackaged.

Molasses is a byproduct generated from the manufacture of sugar. It hold out interesting possibilities - it can be sold untreated on one hand. On the other, it can be used as the principal feedstock for the manufacture of alcohol and a host of downstream chemicals.

Bagasse generated as a by-product, can be used profitably in two ways - as paper and the generation of electricity. The manufacture of paper from Bagasse is an environment-friendly alternative over the conventional route of extracting pulp from trees.