* NEWS FROM SPRI *

 

February 1, 2012

 

SPRI at the American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists – Louisiana Division, Annual Meeting in Conjunction with American Sugar Cane League, Hilton Lafayette, Lafayette, Louisiana, February 6-8, 2012

 

Dr. Charley Richard and Dr. Marianne Mckee will be attending the ASSCT-LA Division Meeting on February 6-8, 2012. Learn more information on the SPRI 2012 Conference in New Orleans at the Chateau Bourbon Hotel on March 11-14, 2012, and benefits of SPRI Membership.

 

**Welcome New Sponsor**

IMPERIAL SUGAR COMPANY

Imperial Sugar Company recently submitted their application for SPRI membership that has been approved by the SPRI Officers and Executive Committee.  Imperial Sugar Company has committed to be your sugar and sweetener company for over 160 years.  Imperial Sugar Company refines extra fine granulated, brown and confectioner’s sugar in Georgia and Louisiana under the Imperial Sugar, Dixie Crystals and Wholesome Sweeteners names.  SPRI wishes to welcome Imperial Sugar Company, as a two unit sponsor has a producer and supplier to the sugar industry. Imperial Sugar Company operates its Savannah Refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia, USA.

 

 

** SPRI SCIENCE AWARD WINNER **

 

Dr. Jan Maarten deBruijn

 

The SPRI Science Award Committee has chosen Dr. Jan Maarten deBruijn as the 2012 recipient of the Sugar Processing Research Institute Science and Technology Award.   Congratulations!  This award acknowledges the many important contributions Dr. Jan Maarten deBruijn has made to the sugar industry for over 25 years through his dedicated to research and the sugar industry.

 

The Award will be presented to Dr. deBruijn at the Conference on Sugar Processing Research to be held on March 11-14, 2012, in New Orleans, Louisiana.  The award recipient is expected to present the Award Lecture at the opening of the conference, on the morning of Monday, March 12, 2012, and will receive the award plaque and honorarium at the closing banquet on Tuesday, March 13, 2012.

 

Sugar Processing Research Institute will pay for travel and expenses to attend the meeting.

 

SPRI 2012 CONFERENCE ON SUGAR PROCESSING RESEARCH

March 11-14, 2012

Chateau Bourbon New Orleans Hotel

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

DEADLINE FOR EARLY REGISTRATION: FEBRUARY 1, 2012

We invite you to attend or present an oral presentation at the 2012 SPRI Conference to be held at the Chateau Bourbon Wyndham Hotel in the famous “French Quarter,” New Orleans, Louisiana on March 11-14, 2012.  The SPRI Conference will have as its theme: “Sugar And Bio-products: International Research Needs For the Future.” Sessions will include process improvements, bio-product development, and sweetener usage. The conference will include technical presentations, commercial presentations, a sugar forum and a technical tour. The agenda, Welcoming Reception and Award’s Banquet along with the meeting location insure that not only will there be an informative meeting but also one where delegates can truly enjoy the venue and partnership with fellow delegates.  For further information, please contact Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc. (SPRI), 1100 Robert E. Lee Blvd, New Orleans, Louisiana 70124, phone: 504-286-4343, fax: 504-282-5387, E-mail address: spri@ars.usda.gov.   Please fill out the conference reply form below to receive a registration packet regarding hotel, guest program and conference registration.

 

For further information on the SPRI Conference contact: Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc., at spri@ars.usda.gov, 504-286-4343.

PRELIMINARY LIST OF SPEAKERS AND PRESENTATIONS

 

Bio Fuel Energy and Its Associated Problems, Babagana Abubakar, Kanuri Development Association (KDA), Maiduguri, Borno, Nigeria

 

Turbidity, Color and Particle Analysis Applications in Sugar Processing, Thomas M. Canty, P.E. and Keith DeMonstoy, J.M. Canty Inc., Lockport, NY, USA

 

Raising Awareness and Providing Solutions to Prevent Carryover Amylase Activity in Sugars and Sugar Products,  Dr. Gillian Eggleston, SRRC/USDA/ARS, New Orleans, LA, USA

 

Reforming Indian Sugar Industry, Anjali Gamta, ISGEC John Thompson, Noida, India

 

Mitigating Dust Explosion Risks in Solid Powder Processing, Tomas Johansson, The Fitzpatrick Company, a subsidiary of IDEX Corporation, Elmhurst, IL, USA

 

Flavonoids and Polyphenols as Antioxidant Agents in Leaf Tissues and Different Sugars from Sugarcane, Jesus Larrahondo, Biotec Corporation, Cali, Colombia

 

Post-Harvest Changes in Sweet Sorghum, Dr. Sarah E. Lingle, USDA/ARS/SRRC, New

Orleans, LA, USA

 

Near Infrared Spectroscopy for the Analysis of Macro and Micro Nutrients in Sugarcane Leaves, Dr. Giovanni Rojas, Colombian Sugarcane Research Center, Cali, Colombia

 

Immobilization of psychrophilic Bacteria for production of cold active dextranase,  Dr. Doaa Abdel Rahman Mahmoud, National Research Center, Cario, Egypt

 

Brassica SURE: A New Sugar Refining Process, Dr. Kaman Singh, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University, Lucknow, India

 

Modeling the Flow of Cane Constituents in the Milling Process, Prof. Omkar P. Thaval, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

 

TBA, Jan Maarten deBruijn, Sudzucker, Obrigheim, Germany, Science Award Winner Presentation

 

POSTERS

 

Advancements in Replacing Hazardous Reagents in Spectrophotometric Sugar Determination, Dr. Eduardo P. Borges, Fermentec Ltda, Piracicaba, Brasil

 

Chemical Characterization of Wax from Sugarcane Grown Under Conditions of the Cauca Valley, Jesus Larrahondo, Biotec Corporation, Cali, Colombia

 

 

19th New Orleans Carbohydrate Symposium – 19th New Orleans Carbohydrate Symposium - NOCS

“CARBODAZE”

Maison Dupuy Hotel French Quarter

March 23, 2012

**Special Acknowledgement to Agilent Technologies for co-sponsoring this event**

This stimulating information exchange on all aspects of carbohydrate chemistry is sponsored by the Sugar Processing Research Institute, Incorporated, in New Orleans, and Event Support Sponsors. Participants are able to present recent research and advancements in carbohydrates with insights to share with fellow carbohydrate chemists in a Gordon style conference atmosphere. This next assembly of the New Orleans Carbohydrate Symposium will convene on Friday, March 23, 2012 before the weekend of the 243rd Spring National American Chemical Society meeting in San Diego, California, on March 25 through 29, 2012. Carbohydrate chemists attending that meeting are invited to come to New Orleans before there route to the ACS National meeting. Papers will be given on a range of topics from glycobiology, synthetic organic methods, fiber chemistry advances, industrial processing, pharmaceutical chemistry of carbohydrates, and carbohydrates in biofuels.

  Visit our link at NOCS0323.html for more details.

Program

 

19th New Orleans Carbohydrate Symposium

Maison Dupuy Hotel, New Orleans, LA

Friday, March 23, 2012

 

Friday, March 23, 2012

Maison Dupuy Hotel – Renoir Room

Session I

Chairperson: Dr. André Striegel, National Institute of Standards & Technology, Gaithersburg, MD

 

8:30 a.m.         Welcome

 

8:40 a.m.         Use of Agriculture Materials in Polymer Composites, Dr. H.N. Cheng, USDA/ARS/SRRC, New Orleans, LA

 

9:10 a.m.         Unraveling Cellulose Fibers: A Twisted Tale, Jodi Hadden, University of Georgia, GA

 

9:40 a.m.         Synergy Between Carbohydrate Chemistry and Theory, Prof. Gabor Csonka, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Budapest, Hungary

 

10:10 a.m.       COFFEE BREAK AND POSTER SESSION

 

 

Session II

Chairperson:  Dr. Robert Woods, University of Georgia, Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, Athens, GA and National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland

 

10:40 a.m.       Loss of Crystalline Structure in Sucrose: A Result of Thermal Decomposition, Dr. Shelly Schmidt, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL

 

11:10 a.m.       Mass Spectrometry of Glycoproteins and Potential Reference Materials, Dr. John Schiel, National Institute of Standards & Technology, Gaithersburg, MD

 

11:40 a.m.       A Facile Method for the Analysis of Psychosine in Pathological Samples, Drs. Yu-Têh Li and Su-Chen Li, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA

 

12:10 p.m.       Lunch, provided by Bistreaux

 

 

Session III

Chairperson: Dr. Mike Dowd, USDA/ARS/SRRC, New Orleans, LA

 

1:30 p.m.         Biochemical Studies of O-GlcNAc Transferase and the Proteins It Modifies, Prof. Megan A. Macnaughtan, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA

 

2:00 p.m.         Glycomimetic Discovery in the Quest to Mimic the Oligosaccharide Activity of the Immune System, Dr. Narasinga Rao, Center for Drug Discovery, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC

 

2:30 p.m.         Delayed Action Toxic Effects of Rare Sugars on Formosan Subterranean Termites, Prof. Roger Laine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA

 

3:00 p.m.         COFFEE BREAK AND POSTER SESSION

 

 

Session IV

Chairperson:  Dr. Al French, SRRC/ARS/SRRC, New Orleans, LA

 

3:30 p.m.         From Functional Carbohydrates to Novel Glycomimetic Drugs, Dr. John Magnani, Glycomimetices, Inc., Bethesda, MD

 

4:00 p.m.         Thiosugar Gold Derivatives Inhibit STAT3 and Kill Cancer Cells, Prof. Waldemar Priebe, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

 

4:30 p.m.         Rapid Glycan Profiling of Monoclonal Antibodies Using the Microfluidic Based mAb-Glyco Chip LC/MS Solution, N. Tang, C. Miller, T. Clary, Dr. Nalini Sadagopan, Agilent Technologies, Pearland, TX

 

5:00 p.m.         Terminal a-2,3- Linked Sialic Acids are Critical Determinants of Pulmonary Endothelial Barrier Integrity and Progression of Lung Disease, Dr. Eugene A. Cioffi, College of Medicine, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL

 

 

Adjourn:  5:30 pm

 

**Welcome New Sponsor**

SOLAZYME INC.

Solazyme Inc. recently submitted their application for SPRI membership that has been approved by the SPRI Officers and Executive Committee.  Solazyme Inc. is the leading renewable oil and bio-products company whose technology uses algae to produce oils and biomaterial in standard fermentation equipment.  Their platform is feedstock flexible and can utilize a wide variety of plant based sugars, such as sugarcane-based sucrose, corn-based dextrose and sugar from other biomass sources including cellulosics.  SPRI wishes to welcome Solazyme Inc., as a one unit sponsor has a user of sugar products of the sugar industry. Solazyme Inc., operates its research facility at South San Francisco, California, USA.

 

 

SPRI at the World Sugar Congress – “A Role of China in the Global Sugar Market,” – September 20-22, 2011, Beijing JW Marriott Hotel, Beijing, China

 

Dr. Charley Richard will be attending the World Sugar Congress on September20-22, 2011. Learn more information on the SPRI 2012 Conference in New Orleans at the Chateau Bourbon Hotel on March 11-14, 2012.

 

 

SPRI at the FENASUCRO 2011, Riberirão Preto, Brazil – August 30 – September 2, 2011

 

Dr. Charley Richard will be attending the Fenasucro 2011 in Brazil.  Learn more information on the SPRI 2012 Conference.

 

Welcome to SPRI’s 2011/12 Fiscal Year

SPRI 2012 Fiscal Year

Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc. (SPRI) begins its fiscal year on July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2012.  For information on SPRI membership please contact Dr. Charley Richard, Managing Director of SPRI or email us at spri@ars.usda.gov  SPRI’s 2011/12 Research Program will be discussed at the upcoming Executive Committee meeting August/September 2011.  All Board of Directors and Committee members are invited to attend the next SPRI Board of Director’s meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, on March 11, 2012, in conjunction with the SPRI 2012 Conference on Sugar Processing Research at the Chateau Bourbon Hotel, New Orleans, Louisiana on March 11-14, 2012.

 

 

SPRI at the American Sugar Alliance –ASA 28th International Sweetener Symposium: Farm Bill in the Time of Budget Deficits – The Outlook for No-Cost U.S. Sugar Policy – June 29-August 3, 2011 at the Stowe Mountain Lodge, Stowe, Vermont

 

Dr. Charley Richard will be attending the upcoming ASA 28th International Sweetener Symposium in Vermont at the Stowe Mountain Lodge on June 29 – August 3, 2011.  Learn more information on SPRI membership, Research Program for the SPRI 2011/12 fiscal year and benefits of being a SPRI member.

 

**Welcome New Sponsor**New Sponsor ****

TATE & LYLE TECHNOLOGY LIMITEDWelcome Tate & Lyle Process Technology Limited

T&L Process Technology Limited recently submitted their application for SPRI membership that has been approved by the SPRI Officers and Executive Committee.  SPRI wishes to welcome Tate & Lyle Process Technology Limited, as a one unit sponsor and supplier to the sugar industry.  Tate & Lyle Process Technology Limited has forty years experience, starting with the development of the Talofloc clarification process for sugar cane refining and now extending to some 200 major projects in more than 130 countries.  T & L Process Technology Limited is a fully integrated business model ranging from agriculture and raw sugar manufacture to refined and liquid sugar.  T &L Process Technology Limited operates its research facility at Thames Refinery, London, United Kingdom.

 

 

 

SPRI at the American Society of Sugarcane Technologists – ASSCT 41ST Annual Joint Meeting – June 8-10, 2011 at the Sheraton New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

 

Dr. Marianne Mckee and the SPRI Technical Staff will be attending the upcoming ASSCT meeting in New Orleans. Dr. Mckee will be presenting a presentation entitled: Measuring Starch in the Raw Sugar Factory.  Ms. Mary An Godshall, Technical Advisor for Sugar Processing Research Institute, will be an invited speaker at a round table panel discussion on “Color in Sugar Processing,” during the conference program.  Learn more information on SPRI membership, Research Program for the SPRI 2011/12 fiscal year and benefits of being a SPRI member.

 

 

 

BOOTH#105 AT BEVTECH’11

SPRI at the International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT) 58th Annual Meeting – BEVTECH’ 11 – April 11-13, 2011 at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA

 

Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc. will host a booth at the ISBT – BEVTECH’ll Expo.  Come visit SPRI at Booth #105.

 

 

 

SPRI at the Sugar Industry Technologists Annual Meeting (SIT) – May 8-11, 2011, Montreal, Canada

Dr. Charley Richard will be attending the SIT Annual Meeting in Montreal, Canada in Montreal, Canada on May 8-11, 2011.  Learn more information on SPRI membership, Research Program for the SPRI 2010/11 fiscal year and benefits of being a SPRI member.

 

 

SPRI at the International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT) 58th Annual Meeting – BEVTECH’ 11 – April 11-13, 2011 at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA

Dr. Marianne Mckee will be attending and presenting an oral presentation at the ISBT – BEVTECH’ 11 Annual Meeting in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The presentation is entitled: The SPRI Rapid Floc Test – A New Method to Predict Acid Beverage Floc in Refined Cane Sugar. Dr. Charley Richard will also be attending.  Learn more information on SPRI membership, Research Program for the SPRI 2011/12 fiscal year and benefits of being a SPRI member.

 

 

SPRI at the American Society of Sugarbeet Technologists – ASSBT Biennal Meeting – March 2-5, 2011 at the Albuquerque Hyatt Regency, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Dr. Charley Richard and Dr. Marianne Mckee will be attending the ASSBT Biennal Meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  This International Sugar Beet Congress will host its meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico on March 2-5, 2011 at the Hyatt Regency.  Learn more information on SPRI membership, Research Program for the SPRI 2011/12 fiscal year and benefits of being a SPRI member.

**NEW CHAIRMAN FOR SPRI**

2010-2012

Mr. Mickey Seither, with The American Sugar Refining, Inc., Arabi, Louisiana, USA, will represent Sugar Processing Research Institute as newly elected chairman for the service years of 2010-2012.  We wish to thank Mr. Doug Emek, with Lantic Inc., /Rogers Sugar Ltd, Alberta, Canada for his service and overwhelming support of SPRI during his service as chairman of SPRI from 2008-2010.  The announcement will be made public at the SPRI 2010 Conference Award Banquet on Tuesday, March 30, 2010, in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, when the gavel is passed to Mickey Seither.  Mr. Mickey Seither served on the board of directors of SPRI since 2006.  He was than elected to the SPRI Executive Committee in 2009 and service has Chairman of the SPRI Research Advisory & Review Committee from 2008-2010.  He has served as Vice-Chairman for the SPRI 2008-2010 fiscal year.  Mr. Mickey Seither brings his many years of dedication and support of SPRI and to the sugar industry has our new elected Chairman along with his many positions and responsibilities with The American Sugar Refining, Inc.  All our hopes go with Mr. Mickey Seither has he brings SPRI into a new direction in sugar research and a changing sugar industry in processing of raw and white cane and beet sugar.                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

** Welcome**

Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc. (SPRI) wishes to welcome Alicia Certucha Arellano, Research and Development with COPROBAMEX, Bosques de las Lomas, Mexico D.F. to the SPRI Research Advisory and Review Committee. COPROBAMEX is a company supplier of the sugar industry and supplier and manufacturer of Sucroliq – the innovation in liquid sugar. Their role in the sugar industry is a supplier to the industry.  Their goal is to be a leader in the nutritional industry with products its clients and suppliers use to grow together in the national and international sector.

NEXT SPRI BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND COMMITTEE MEETINGS

Sunday, March 11, 2012

             

The SPRI Board of Directors and Committee Members will meet at the next SPRI Board of Directors meeting on Sunday, March 11, 2012, at the Chateau Bourbon New Orleans Hotel in conjunction with the SPRI 2012 Conference on March 11-14, 2012 in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.  Schedule of Events will be posted shortly.  

 

SUGAR PROCESSING RESEARCH INSTITUTE, INC.

 

Schedule of Events

 

SPRI Board of Directors and Committee Meetings

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Chateau Bourbon Wyndham Hotel

New Orleans, Louisiana

 

Research Advisory and Review Committee Meeting

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Chateau Bourbon Wyndham Hotel

Orleans B

9:00 am – 12:00 pm

 

SPRI Board of Directors Luncheon

Chateau Bourbon Wyndham Hotel

Orleans A

12:00 pm – 2:00 pm

 

SPRI Board of Directors Annual Meeting of the Corporation

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Chateau Bourbon Wyndham Hotel

Orleans B

2:00 am – 2:10 pm

 

SPRI Board of Directors/Executive Committee Meeting

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Chateau Bourbon Wyndham Hotel

Orleans B

2:10 am – 5:30 pm

 

SPRI Conference

Welcoming Reception

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Chateau Bourbon Wyndham Hotel

Garden Courtyard

6:30 pm – 8:30 pm

 

Dr. Charley Richard, phone: 504-286-4343, 504-286-4230, Fax: 504-282-5387, E-mail: spri@ars.usda.gov

 

________________________________________

** Appointment of Dr. Ed Cleveland as New Center Director **

Southern Regional Research Center, New Orleans, LA

We are pleased to announce the selection of Dr. Thomas E. Cleveland as the Center Director of the Southern Regional Research Center (SRRC), New Orleans, LA.  He succeeds Dr. J. Patrick Jordan, who retired as Center Director in January 2008.  Dr. Cleveland received his B.S. degree in Zoology and his M.S. in Microbiology from Louisiana Tech University and received his Ph.D. in Plant Pathology from Louisiana State University in 1980.  Dr. Cleveland joined ARS in 1984 in New Orleans following Fellow positions at the University of Kentucky and Washington State University.

As Research Leader for the Food and Feed Safety Research Unit at SRRC from 1988 until selection as Center Director, Dr. Cleveland led the research program investigating biotechnological methods to eliminate mycotoxin formation in developing crops.  Dr. Cleveland has authored or coauthored over 225 publications in mycopathology.  Dr. Cleveland has achieved a national and international reputation for his research on aflatoxin contamination of food and feed crops.  Among his many honors, he was selected to receive the Mid South Area ARS Early Career Scientist Award in 1990; received the USDA Group Honor Award in 1998 “For elimination of aflatoxin, a potent carcinogen, from food and feed supplies, and preventing severe economic losses”; elected Fellow of the Society for Industrial Microbiology (2002), American Association for the Advancement of Science (2003), and American Academy of Microbiology (2004); selected as 2003 ARS Outstanding Senior Scientist; received the USDA, Group Honor Award for Excellence as a member of the Mid South Area Workforce Diversity Committee (MSA-WDC) (2003), as well as the Administrator’s Equal Employment Opportunity/Civil Rights Award to members of the MSA-WDC (2003); and is being presented the Arima Award (2008) by the International Union of Microbiological Sciences.

Dr. Cleveland demonstrated and honed his scientific, technical, leadership, managerial and administrative skills via several executive assignments in ARS, including organizing the first Aflatoxin Elimination Workshop leading to formation of a consortium of industry and university cooperators, increased funding, and a detail to the National Program Staff (1977); serving as Acting Director of the Western Regional Research Center (1998); serving as Acting Associate Area Director, North Atlantic Area (2004); and, most recently, serving as the Scientific Quality Review Officer in the Office of Scientific Quality and Review.  Dr. Cleveland’s success in these executive assignments eminently qualifies him to be the Director of the SRRC.  Please join me in welcoming Dr. Cleveland to his new assignment.

SPRI wishes all the success with the appointment of Dr. Ed Cleveland, as the new building director at the USDA-ARS Southern Regional Research Center and the collaboration with SPRI for the years to come.

**NEW MANAGING DIRECTOR FOR SPRI**

The Board of Directors of Sugar Processing Research Institute (SPRI) has selected Dr. Charley Richard to assume the responsibilities of Managing Director beginning January 2007.  Dr. Richard takes over the leadership role following the retirement of Ms. Mary An Godshall who has served the organization in that capacity for the last seven years.  Dr. Richard brings over 35 years of experience in sugar related research organizations and will attempt to build upon the many successes of the previous managing directors.  Ms. Godshall will continue to serve the organization on a part time basis as technical advisor.

 

Biography

 

Dr. Richard was raised on a sugarcane farm near Thibodaux, LA and received his Masters and Ph.D from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LA.  He spent much of his career working for the Louisiana sugar industry but in the last five years has initiated a successful international research and consulting firm, C. Richard & Associates.  He has strong ties to numerous research organizations and industry members in the international sugar community which he plans to utilize in his position with SPRI.  Dr. Richard served has a member on SPRI’s Board of Directors for the last 9 years representing Sterling Sugars of Franklin, Louisiana, USA.  Dr. Richard is also a member of numerous sugar related organizations throughout the world and participates in numerous civic organizations in the New Orleans region.  

 

SPRI is a unique research organization with expertise in both cane and beet sugar.  It is an independent, non-profit organization that is supported by member companies, which include cane and beet sugar producers, cane refineries, and supplier and user companies.  SPRI’s recent accomplishments include analytical tests (starch, polysaccharides, phenolics, turbidity) to improve sugar refinery and sugarcane/sugarbeet factory performance, an understanding of the nature of color and odor issues in sugar processing, and its collaborative work with its numerous international sponsors.

 

As managing director, Dr. Richard plans to concentrate on the financial return that member companies should receive from their research investment.  A close ‘hands on’ working relationship with the member companies which stresses collaboration and communication are initiatives that SPRI and its staff will pursue in the immediate future.  The SPRI research efforts are housed at the USDA Southern Regional Research Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.  

 

UPCOMING EVENTS AND MEETINGS

 

 

American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists - ASSCT Louisiana Division Meeting, Lafayette Hilton and Towers, Lafayette, Louisiana, USA, February 6-8, 2012 [www.assct.org]

 

SPRI Board of Directors and Committee Meetings, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, March 11, 2012, Chateau Bourbon New Orleans

 

SPRI 2012 Conference on Sugar Processing Research, March 11-14, 2012, Chateau Bourbon New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

 

19th New Orleans Carbohydrate Symposium, March 23, 2012, Maison Dupuy Hotel, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

AVH – Symposium – Andrew van Hook, Reims Cedex, France, March 29, 2012 [www.associationavh.com]

Sugar Industry Technologists - S.I.T., May 6-9, 2012, Auckland, New Zealand [www.sucrose.com/sit]

VDZ Annual General Meeting, May 14-16, 2012, Magdeburg, Germany

ICUMSA 28th Session – Cambridge 2012, Downing College, University of Cambridge, London, UK, July 15-17, 2012

ASSBT- 37th American Society of Sugarbeet Technologists Meeting, Anaheim, California, USA, February 27 – March 2, 2013 [www.bsdf-assbt.org]

20th New Orleans Carbohydrate Symposium, April 5, 2013, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

245th American Chemical Society National Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, April 7-11, 2013

3rd European Society of Sugar Technologists (ESST), Warsaw, Poland, May 6-8, 2013

Sugar Industry Technologists - S.I.T., May 12-15, 2013, Guangzhou, China [www.sucrose.com/sit]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Publications and Presentations presented by SPRI

SPRI will present an oral presentation at the ASSBT 41st Annual Joint Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana on June 8-10, 201l. Abstract posted below.

SPRI will present an oral presentation at the ISBT – BEVTECH ’11 Annual Meeting in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA on April 11-13, 2011, also hosting a Expo Booth. Abstract posted below.

SPRI will present an oral presentation at the ASSBT 36th Biennial Meeting in Albuquerque Hyatt Regency, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, on March 2-5, 2011. Abstract posted below.

SPRI Abstracts

Abstract for an oral presentation at the American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists - ASSCT 41ST Annual Joint Meeting – June 8-10, 2011 at the Sheraton New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Measuring Starch in the Raw Sugar Factory, Marianne McKee, Ronnie Triche, Mary An Godshall and Charley Richard Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc., New Orleans, LA 70124

 

Abstract 

 

Starch is a polysaccharide that arrives at the raw sugar factory in the sugarcane plant. It is released from the plant during the milling or diffusion stage of sugarcane processing.  After release into cane juice, starch in high concentrations can cause problems inside the raw factory as well as being carried into the raw sugar and subsequently into the refinery process.  If starch is present in raw sugar in concentrations of approximately 250 ppm or higher, problems arise during refining.  These include filterability issues, higher phosphate levels in clarified liquor using phosphatation refining, and poor filterability after clarification in carbonatation refining.  Many methods exist for measuring starch in raw sugars, but no standard method is in use throughout the international sugar industry.  These methods, while oftentimes very accurate, are not rapid and not well suited for use in the raw sugar factory laboratory.  Sugar Processing Research Institute (SPRI) has developed a simple, rapid, and quantitative starch test for use with cane juice and raw cane sugar samples.  The time required to complete the analysis of the SPRI Rapid Starch Method is 15-20 minutes and multiple samples can be analyzed at once.  Very small amounts of reagents are required and the equipment needed is usually readily available in most mill laboratories.  This paper will discuss starch and problems it can cause in cane sugar processing from raw sugar factory and refinery perspectives,  the SPRI rapid starch method details, equipment requirements, and the analysis of mixed cane juice, clarified cane juice, and raw sugar samples.

 

Abstract for an oral presentation at the International Society of Beverage Technologists – ISBT BEVTECH 2011 Meeting, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina on April 11-13, 2011

The SPRI Rapid Floc Test – A New Method to Predict Acid Beverage Floc in Refined White Cane Sugar, Marianne McKee, Ronnie Triche, Mary An Godshall, and Charley Richard, Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc., New Orleans, LA

 

As a result of research conducted by SPRI, a rapid test to predict floc formation in refined white cane sugar has been developed.  The test is based on the association SPRI has discovered between an absorbance ratio (AR) and floc potential.  Numerous refined white cane sugars have been tested in our laboratory and a strong correlation exists between the AR ratio and the currently used 10-day floc prediction test.  A white sugar solution is prepared and filtered to remove turbidity.  The absorbance is measured at two different pH levels.  The ratio of the absorbances is known as the Absorbance Ratio (AR).  SPRI has studied many quality parameters of white sugar such as pH, color, turbidity, and total polysaccharide but AR seems to be the quality parameter which correlates best to the floccing potential of the sugar.

Abstract of paper published in the International Sugar Journal, Vol. 113, issue no. 1345, January 2011, pp. 35-44

Effects of producing maple syrup from concentrated and reconstituted maple sap of different sugar concentrations, A.K. van den Berg1, T.D. Perkins1, M.L. Isselhardt1, M.A. Godshall2 and S.W. Lloyd3.    1Proctor Maple Research Center, The University of Vermont, Underhill Ctr. VT,  2Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc., New Orleans, LA 3USDA-ARS-SRRC, New Orleans, LA

Maple syrup is produced and marketed as a specialty, ‘natural’ sweetener with highly desirable properties, particularly its unique flavor and aroma profile. Pre-concentration of maple sap by membrane separation is used to increase the efficiency and profitability of maple production by reducing the time and fuel necessary to concentrate sap to maple syrup density using only the traditional method of thermal evaporation in open-pan style evaporators.  However, there is some concern that producing syrup from sap concentrated by membrane processes to higher than previously standard concentration levels (5-8%) might yield negative impacts on the properties of maple syrup by reducing the length of time sap is processed with heat, which generates the majority of color, flavor, and aroma compounds.  To investigate this question, experiments were conducted in which maple syrup was produced simultaneously from concentrated and reconstituted maple sap at four levels of sugar concentration, 2, 8, 12, and 15%.  The chemical composition and flavor of the syrups produced were subsequently analyzed and evaluated.  Maple syrup produced from more concentrated sap material was lighter in color, had a higher pH, and contained smaller quantities of invert sugar and volatile flavor compounds than syrup produced simultaneously with less concentrated sap material.  However, differences observed in chemical composition were numerically small and not likely of practical significance.  In addition, panelists in sensory evaluation experiments were unable to detect overall differences in the flavor of syrup produced simultaneously from sap material at 2 and 15% sugar concentration.  The results indicate that chemical composition and flavor do not differ significantly in maple syrup produced from sap material of different sugar concentrations, and thus that producing syrup form sap concentrated by membrane separation to higher sugar concentration levels (up to 15%) is an acceptable method maple producers can use to increase the profitability of maple syrup production.

 

Abstract for an oral presentation at the American Society of Sugarbeet Technologists – ASSBT Biennial Meeting, Albuquerque Hyatt Regency, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA on March 2-5, 2011

Color formation in white beet sugars, Marianne McKee, Ronnie Triche, Mary An Godshall, and Charley Richard. Sugar Processing Research Institute, Inc., New Orleans, LA

Previous studies by SPRI have shown that beet sugar colorants tend to be very reactive and autocatalytic in nature.  These studies have shown the development of colorants over the course of sugarbeet processing.  Colorants that tend to transfer into the crystal usually have high molecular weight and are formed during processing, most likely the result of alkaline degradation of  invert sugars during carbonation.  From this point, the colorants increase throughout the process especially during evaporation where the increase may be as much as 15% to 25%.  White beet sugar increases during storage are usually due to two factors – the syrup layer around the crystal and the high molecular weight colorants found inside the crystal.  The differences in these two factors will be discussed for whit sugars produced during a beet campaign and a thick juice campaign.

 

 

 

 

 

 

USNC

Visit the USNC web page on this site at www.spriinc.org/usnc.html for more information.  

For more information on becoming a member of the USNC, please contact Mary An Godshall, ma.godshall@ars.usda.gov   or write us at USNC, New Orleans Office, 1100 Robert E. Lee Blvd., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70124., tel: 504-286-4329, 504-286-4343, fax: 504-282-5387.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Misc

The SPRI offices will be closed on Monday, February 20 and Tuesday, February 21 to observe Washington’s Birthday (President’s Day) and Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday) holidays and will reopen on Wednesday, February 22.  Please contact us via e-mail address at spri@ars.usda.gov for information regarding the upcoming SPRI 2012 Conference at the Chateau Bourbon Hotel French Quarter on March 11-14, 2012.

The SPRI Office will be housed in the Dauphine A at the Chateau Bourbon Hotel during the SPRI Conference on March 11-14, 2012.

SPRI Office, 1100 Robert E. Lee Blvd., New Orleans, LA, 70124, phone: 504-286-4343, - 4230, fax: 504-282-5387

 

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