22 January 2020

Beet sugar more sustainable than cane sugar

The production of Dutch beet sugar produces considerably less CO2 and fine particles than the production of cane sugar. Beet sugar also requires far less land and consumes significantly less water. These are the findings of a recent study carried out by the leading international consultancy, Blonk Consultants. The study has been peer reviewed by three independent organisations; SGS Search, DSM and Milieu Centraal.

Manufacturers who process sugar as an ingredient and consumers who eat sugar can do so more sustainably if they use Dutch beet sugar instead of cane sugar. Suiker Unie commissioned a study to determine as objectively as possible how beet sugar scored against cane sugar on relevant aspects of life cycle assessment (LCA). Blonk Consultants studied the impact on climate change, fine particle emissions, land use and water consumption of Dutch beet sugar in comparison with Brazilian and Indian cane sugar. It also took the impact of electricity production as a by-product of cane sugar into account and the consequences of pre-harvest burning to make the sugar cane harvest less labour intensive.

The main conclusions are:

  • The impact of Brazilian cane sugar on the climate is four times as high as that of Dutch beet sugar. The impact of Indian cane sugar is 37% higher than that of beet sugar.
  • Beet sugar production produces less than half the fine particles that Brazilian cane sugar production produces and just 38% of that of Indian cane sugar (expressed as fine particles in weight per kilogram of sugar produced).
  • It takes 50% more land to produce cane sugar in Brazil than it does to produce beet sugar. In India, nearly twice as much land is needed. Land use is expressed as the square metres needed to produce a kilogram of sugar
  • Little water is needed to produce sugar in the Netherlands and Brazil, two litres per kg sugar for beet sugar and 40 litres for Brazilian cane sugar. Indian cane sugar, by contrast, is extremely thirsty, needing more than 1,000 litres of water to produce a kilogram of sugar. The water is used to irrigate the sugar cane crop.

Would you like more detailed information about this LCA report?

Download the leaflet

  • Click here for the complete article
  • Or contact Bertram de Crom, Manager Environmental Affairs bertram.de.crom@suikerunie.com | +31 165 525 095
     

Share this message

Other articles

15 February 2024

This sugar campaign goes beyond sugar alone

At the start of this month, our two Dutch factories received that the last sugar beets of this campaign. This marks the conclusion of this year’s sugar beet campaign. Reflecting on the achievement,...

Continue reading
20 September 2023

Annual beet campaign started again

From today, all Cosun Beet Company factories are back to processing sugar beet. The factories in Dinteloord and Hoogkerk (Groningen) received the first beets this morning. Processing already started...

Continue reading
15 June 2023

The use of sugar beet for bio-based materials and the effects on food security

Renewable Carbon Initiative, of which Cosun Beet Company is a founding member, publishes new insights into a hotly debated topic and urges for careful and evidence-based argumentation. In its latest publication,...

Continue reading
11 May 2023

What exactly is in those big tanks?

The Cosun Beet Company factories in Dinteloord and Vierverlaten are once again buzzing with activity. The reason? The start of the thick juice campaign. The what? The thick juice campaign. This is the...

Continue reading
31 January 2023

The Dutch beet campaign has ended

Last weekend, the sugar factory in Vierverlaten in the province of Groningen processed the last sugar beets of the 2022-2023 campaign. In Dinteloord, the campaign ended in the night of Thursday 26 January....

Continue reading
01 December 2022

Fidesse®: a new functional ingredient for meat substitutes

Consumers are more often opting for plant-based alternatives like meat substitutes. Fidesse®, a new innovative and functional ingredient for meat substitutes, provides just the right texture and juiciness...

Continue reading
08 November 2022

Revisiting the past with the Beet Tour

A brief step back in time, to when sugar beets were still transported to the sugar factories by flat-bottom boat…. the Beet Tour recaptures the past! This year’s event was particularly special...

Continue reading
03 November 2022

Optimal biodiversity in sugar beet growing

Every year in the Netherlands, sugar beets are grown on around 85,000 hectares of farmland. All of these beets are processed by the Cosun Beet Company. We have joined forces with the Province of Noord-Brabant...

Continue reading
18 October 2022

Highest FSA level once again for Dutch beet cultivation

Following a comprehensive audit among beet growers, the Cosun Beet Company has once again achieved the highest status of sustainable beet cultivation: FSA Gold. This is the system used by the SAI (Sustainable...

Continue reading
23 September 2022

Puttershoek solar park with 67,000 panels officially inaugurated

More than 67,000 solar panels that generate as much electricity as 8,200 households consume annually: that is exactly what the Puttershoek Solar Park in the municipality of Hoeksche Waard in South...

Continue reading
13 September 2022

The beet campaign has started

Today marks the start of the beet campaign at the Cosun Beet Company factories. The campaign in the Netherlands is expected to last 19 weeks this year, which means that the factories in Dinteloord and...

Continue reading
25 May 2022

Timely construction of infrastructure leads to potential savings of 8.5 megatons of CO2 in Central and West Brabant region

The business community in the Central and West Brabant region is ready to make a significant contribution in coming years to a more sustainable Dutch economy. Six companies have prepared plans for CO2...

Continue reading
23 May 2022

Sustainable bag based on sugar beet pulp wins at EUROSAC Grand Prix

A paper bag that is strong, food safe, recyclable, compostable and both offset and flexo printable. Due to a unique synergy in the value chain, five partners have created this sustainable and innovative...

Continue reading
13 May 2022

The thick juice campaign has begun

Apart from the beet campaign, which starts in September and usually lasts until mid-January, the Cosun Beet Company sugar factories also carry out a second campaign: the thick juice campaign. This usually...

Continue reading
04 March 2022

Sugar beet carbon as an alternative for fossil carbon

In the field of sustainability, the focus often seems to be on renewable energy and decarbonisation, but this is not an option for the chemical and material sector. As these are entirely based on the use...

Continue reading
01 March 2022

New Scientific Opinion EFSA on the Tolerable Upper Intake Level for dietary sugars

Cosun Beet Company is very pleased with the publication of the EFSA Scientific Opinion on a Tolerable upper intake level (UL) for dietary sugars.The Agency could not set a science-based UL for dietary...

Continue reading
23 February 2022

Cosun Beet Company achieves EcoVadis platinum rating

For the second time in a row, the Cosun Beet Company has been awarded a platinum rating from EcoVadis.  This places the Cosun Beet Company among the top 1% of participating companies in the ‘Manufacture...

Continue reading
02 February 2022

Subsidy for sustainable biorefinery from sugar beet pulp

The Province of Groningen has granted the Cosun Beet Company a subsidy of three million euros for the construction of a sustainable biorefinery in Delfzijl. In this innovative factory, we will be converting...

Continue reading
26 January 2022

Dutch beet campaign has been completed

The Dutch sugar beet campaign has been completed. The last beet to the sugar factory in Hoogkerk (Groningen) was delivered on Friday 14 January, while the last shipment of sugar beet to the factory in...

Continue reading
18 January 2022

Last part of former sugar factory site in Puttershoek sold

Last December, the final section of the site in Puttershoek was handed over to the Belgian buyer, AG Insurance. This marks the end of the extensive efforts undertaken by both the Cosun Beet Company and...

Continue reading
25 November 2021

Launch of the Bright Beet Book: more than 130 versatile sugar beet applications

From pastries to vegan hamburgers, from sports clothes to cosmetics, from antifreeze agents in vaccines to replacements for microplastics. With all its versatility, the sugar beet is a key component in...

Continue reading
12 October 2021

Cosun Beet Company’s speciality factory runs on self-generated green energy

Since this summer, production at the Cosun Beet Company’s speciality factory in Puttershoek has been powered by self-produced green energy. This energy is generated at the neighbouring Cosun Solar...

Continue reading
05 October 2021

Online launch of the Bright Beet Book on 25 November 2021

Cosun Beet Company will launch its Bright Beet Book on 25 November. The book is a compilation of more than 130 eye-opening applications that are based on sugar beet. Sugar beet has enormous potential....

Continue reading
13 September 2021

Dutch beet campaign has started

Tody, on Monday 13 September, the beet campaign in the Dutch factories has started, while it began a week earlier, on Tuesday 7 September, at our German factory (Anklam). According to the current...

Continue reading
09 September 2021

Transport of 270,000 tonnes of beet more sustainable by ship

In this campaign, Cosun Beet Company will transport 270,000 tonnes of sugar beet from South Limburg to the factory in Dinteloord by ship. This follows on from the successful pilot in 2020 and the productive...

Continue reading
30 July 2021

Van Gilse kilo granulated sugar bags made from sugar beet paper

As from this summer, sugar beet pulp will be used to make Van Gilse kilo bags of granulated sugar. The kilo bags will be on sale in supermarkets. Sugar beet paper is a ground breaking innovation of Cosun...

Continue reading
08 June 2021

Cosun Beet Company 100% owner of Limako trading company

Cosun Beet Company became the sole owner of the international sugar trading company Limako bv in May 2021. It acquired the remaining 49% of shares from ED&F Man, the one of the world’s biggest...

Continue reading
18 May 2021

Cosun Beet Company starts refining thick juice

Today, the annual processing of thick juice into sugar has started in Dinteloord. Earlier, the factories in Vierverlaten and Anklam also started with refining thick juice. Thick juice is an intermediate...

Continue reading
22 April 2021

Cosun Beet Company joins forces with Avantium

Cosun Beet Company and Avantium N.V. have the ambition to jointly construct and operate the first commercial plant for the production of plant-based glycols using Avantium’s Ray Technology™....

Continue reading
21 April 2021

Online talkshow 'Bright Beet Solutions'

We look back with satisfaction at the online event 'Bright Beet Solutions' on April 15, 2021. During the online event, moderator Esther van Rijswijk spoke with Paul Mesters (CEO), Olaf van...

Continue reading
15 February 2021

Beet paper packaging for industrial customers

Cosun Beet Company has taken a huge step forwards to using sustainable sugar beet paper in industrial 25 kg bags. Zeelandia, an international manufacturer of bread and pastry ingredients, has tested the...

Continue reading
18 December 2020

Lean & Green Star for transport using our own green gas

Cosun Beet Company has been awarded a Lean & Green Star in recognition of the substantial reduction in its CO₂ emissions. The reduction has been achieved by transporting bulk sugar using green gas...

Continue reading
15 December 2020

Cosun Beet Company piloting “beet by barge” to reduce CO2 emissions

Cosun Beet Company is holding a pilot project to transport sugar beet from south Limburg to the sugar factory in Dinteloord by barge during the current beet campaign. The pilot must determine whether this...

Continue reading
23 October 2020

From sugar beet pulp to sustainable paper

You will probably see them on supermarket shelves in March 2021: kilogram bags of Van Gilse granulated sugar packed in paper made from sugar beet pulp. This breakthrough sustainable innovation is a joint...

Continue reading
20 October 2020

Appeals Tribunal decision: Commercial linking wrinkles to sugar was misleading

A television commercial by the Douglas perfumery chain linking wrinkles to sugar was misleading and dishonest, according to the Advertising Code Committee (RCC) and the Appeals Tribunal (CvB). We had lodged...

Continue reading
22 September 2020

Later start to the Dutch beet campaign

The beet campaign kicks off in Dutch factories this year on 22 September, while it’s already underway in our German factory in Anklam, having started 8 September. The Dutch campaign gets off to a...

Continue reading
10 September 2020

Beet Advisery System (BAS) nominated for Computable Award

It was recently announced that the Beet Advisery System (BAS), an advisory App for beet growers created by Cosun Beet Company, has been nominated for a Computable Award in the Corporate projects category....

Continue reading
30 July 2020

EcoVadis awards Cosun Beet Company Platinum medal

After five successive years of being awarded the EcoVadis Gold medal, Cosun Beet Company has been honoured with a Platinum medal for 2020. This is the highest possible rating and, with a score of 73 out...

Continue reading
13 July 2020

Announcement co-operation Cosun Beet Company with Achard International

To strengthen our current presence as Cosun Beet Company on the Italian market and in line with our strategy of supporting our direct approach; we are pleased to announce that Achard International will...

Continue reading
02 July 2020

Suiker Unie going forward under the name Cosun Beet Company

Cosun Beet Company. This is the new name announced today by the former Suiker Unie. “A name that seamlessly matches our new strategy,” says CEO Paul Mesters. “Sugar beet are the source...

Continue reading
15 June 2020

Suiker Unie to present new strategy under a new name on 2 July

Suiker Unie will announce a new strategy and a new name on 2 July. ‘With the new strategy we can respond to changing consumer demands and new opportunities in the market with a future-proof name,’...

Continue reading
12 May 2020

Suiker Unie refining thick juice

Suiker Unie started its annual campaign to refine thick juice into granulated sugar this week. Despite the restrictions imposed by the coronavirus guidance, the sugar factories in Dinteloord and Vierverlaten...

Continue reading
07 May 2020

Multiyear practical study of strip cropping: Nature Field

Cosun, CZAV and farmer Eugène van den Eijnden have started a unique experiment with the support of their partners in the supply chain to determine whether profitable farming can go hand in hand...

Continue reading
25 March 2020

Coronavirus: health and safety first

Cosun and Suiker Unie have set up a crisis team to deal with the effects of the corona crisis and keep their primary processes running. The overriding goal is to provide maximum protection to our staff,...

Continue reading
18 March 2020

Cosun Solar Park Puttershoek: 20 megawatts of sustainable energy

The contracts have been signed. Cosun Solar Park Puttershoek will be built this year. Following a call for tenders, the initiator and client, Suiker Unie, selected KiesZon to build the gigantic solar park....

Continue reading
12 February 2020

Suiker Unie Roosendaal: Excellence Award for Consistent TPM

Suiker Unie’s sugar specialities factory in Roosendaal has won the Excellence Award for Consistent TPM. After coming through the final audit by two Japanese auditors, the facility received the good...

Continue reading
22 January 2020

Beet sugar more sustainable than cane sugar

The production of Dutch beet sugar produces considerably less CO2 and fine particles than the production of cane sugar. Beet sugar also requires far less land and consumes significantly less water. These...

Continue reading
13 January 2020

Sustainable Industry Challenge 2020: Suiker Unie selects Bioextrax as winner with the best innovation

Suiker Unie has selected Bioextrax as the winner of its challenge in the green chemical theme of the Sustainable Industry Challenge 2020. This global competition was held by Economic Board Groningen to...

Continue reading
27 November 2019

Beet growers were awarded the highest SAI sustainability level: FSA Gold

All Suiker Unie’s sugar beet growers have been awarded FSA Gold level. The Sustainable Agricultural Initiative platform supports sustainable farming initiatives and assesses the sustainability of...

Continue reading
05 November 2019

Major international challenge for green solutions in the chemical and energy sectors

In collaboration with its partners in the north of the Netherlands, Economic Board Groningen is organising an international pitch event for innovative scale-ups in the green chemical, recycling and green...

Continue reading
11 October 2019

Suiker Unie to produce protein from plant leaves

Suiker Unie officially took its Green Protein Demo Plant into operation on 10 October and started producing protein from sugar beet foliage. The production process is a unique, pioneering method that Suiker...

Continue reading
11 October 2019

Suiker Unie wins 2019 FNLI award

Suiker Unie won the 2019 FNLI award on 10 October. The Dutch Food Industry Federation (FNLI) introduced the award this year for people or teams that go to extraordinary lengths to raise innovative initiatives...

Continue reading
06 September 2019

Early but staggered start to the beet campaign

The sugar beet campaign will have a staggered start this year. The sugar factories will start production on 6 September in Dinteloord and on 10 September in Anklam and Groningen. Logistically, a staggered...

Continue reading
02 September 2019

Suiker Unie awarded EcoVadis gold rating for fifth year in succession

EcoVadis has again awarded Suiker Unie a gold rating. We are extremely proud that our commitment to sustainability has been recognised for the fifth year in succession and crowned with a gold rating for...

Continue reading
18 April 2019

Furthering sustainability together with Green Circles

A beautiful location and sunny day provided a perfect start for the ‘Green Circles’ sugar beet circular economy. On 18 April 2019, Suiker Unie, the province of North Brabant, and Naturalis...

Continue reading
14 February 2019

New bulk trucks running entirely on Suiker Unie’s own green gas

Technical advances recently made it possible to have gas-fuelled trucks transport train weights of up to 50 tonnes. The 410 hp tractor units will make Suiker Unie’s bulk transport operations even...

Continue reading
22 January 2019

First consumer products launched with Betafib®

‘Royal COSUN Biobased Products’, part of Suiker Unie, introduced 100% bio-based rheology modifier, developed during PULP2VALUE demonstration project, for various consumer applications such...

Continue reading
06 July 2018

Unveiling of the world’s first completely circular car

On Friday 6 July, Noah, the world's first completely circular car, was unveiled at the Cosun Innovation Centre in Dinteloord. The two-seater car, the chassis of which is largely made of sugar and the...

Continue reading

We use functional and analytical cookies to ensure the proper functioning of our website and to make our website more user-friendly. When you click on 'continue', you give permission to place cookies.