109 



QUALITY OF SUGAR PRODUCED IN NEGROS. 



Negros sugar, as sold in the Iloilo market, is classified commercially under 

 two main headings, "Superior" and "Wet," according to whether it polarizes 

 above or below 80°. 



The "Superior" sugar is subdivided as follows: 



No. 1, from 88°.9 (or higher) to 87°, inclusive, average, 88°. 

 No. 2, from 86°.9 to 85°, inclusive, average, 86°. 

 No. 3, from 84°. 9 to 80°, inclusive, average, 82°.5. 



The diflference in price between grades has ordinarily been 25 centavos per picul 

 of 63.25 kilos. The fact that practically all Iloilo "Superior" sugar is now bought 

 for shipment to New York is of late beginning to disturb this simple and harmonious 

 price diflference between grades. According to the New York basis of 0.1 cent gold 

 per pound for each degree diflference in polarization up or down, the diflference in 

 price between Nos. 1 and 2 would be 56 centavos per picul, and between Nos. 2 

 and 3, 98 centavos per picul. Large purchases of "Superior" sugar are generally 

 based on an arbitrary assortment, originally supposed to represent the average 

 proportion of the diflferent grades produced, which is one-eighth (or 12.5 per cent) 

 of No. 1, two-eighths (or 25 per cent) of No. 2, and five-eighths (or 62.5 per cent) 

 of No. 3, the price for assorted being half-way between No. 2 and No. 3, and 

 its average polarization being 84°. Of late years rather more No. 1 has been 

 produced and less of Nos. 2 and 3 than is called for by "basis assorted," although 

 the average polarization is about the same. The records of "Superior" sugar 

 received by one firm during five years were: No. 1, 26 per cent; No. 2, 18 per 

 cent; and No. 3, 56 per cent — the average polarization of the lot coming to 84.4 

 per cent. 



Sugar polarizing less than 80° is classed as: 



"Humedo" (wet), from 79°.9 to 76°, inclusive. 

 "Corriente" (current), from 75°. 9 to 70°, inclusive. 



"Humedo" is quoted at about 1 peso less than No. 3, while "corriente" has no 

 fixed ratio to the other grades. The relative amounts which are produced of 

 these two grades are rather difl&cult to estimate, since much is mixed together 

 and sold to Chinese buyers as "wet" sugar regardless of its polarization, while 

 the better grade of "humedo" is frequently worked off by blending it in small 

 quantities with No. 3 "Superior." Climatic conditions during diflferent years 

 also aflfect the proportion of low-grade sugars turned out, but they rarely exceed 

 20 per cent or fall below 10 per cent of the total production. 



The average quality of the sugar produced in Negros from year to 

 year may be considered, then, to be approximately 85 per cent of "Supe- 

 rior/' polarizing 84°, and 15 per cent of "Wet," polarizing 75", with 

 an average polarization for the whole of 82°. 6. 



Quality of sugar estimated from tests made in Negros. — In connec- 

 tion with the work of testing the efficiency of mills, samples of mill 

 juice and of the sugar being made at the time w^ere analyzed as follows : 



