Sugar

Sugar, the quintessential sweetener, is sucrose in its pure form. It is made from sugarcane and sugar beets. The history of sugar production from sugarcane is so old that records of it predate the common era. Production from sugar beets is more recent in development and is due to innovations made by the Prussian chemist Andreas Sigismund Marggraf in 1747.

To make sugar, sugarcane is crushed in a cane press, or sugar beets are put in extraction vessels called diffusers, to extract liquid from them. This liquid is then crystallized through processes of heating and condensing. A centrifuge is then used to separate the crystals (brown sugar) from the molasses. Refined sugar is made by dissolving the brown sugar and refining it with processes such as decolorization and then crystallizing it. In Japan, varieties of refined sugar are categorized according to the size of their granules into two broad groupings: kuruma-to (white sugar), which is the mostly finely granulated, and the more coarsely granulated zarame-to. Other varieties of processed sugar include rock sugar, cube sugar, and powdered sugar. Sugar is a vital component of processed food as a sweetener and flavoring, and its preservative effects can also be utilized to make products such as candied fruits (or conserves) and neri-yokan (a firm bean jelly). Though sugar can alleviate fatigue, overconsumption can lead to gastrointestinal damage and inhibit bone development.

Sugar was first brought to Japan in the Nara period (710–794). The Chinese monk Jianzhen (known in Japan as Ganjin) is sometimes said to be the one who introduced sugar, but no definite evidence exists. For a long time Japan only imported sugar from other countries. Western-style confections (nanbangashi) such as konpeito (tiny colored candies, from Portuguese confeito), kasutera (sponge cake), boro (egg cookies, from Portuguese bolo) and karumera (caramel confections, from Spanish and Portuguese caramelo) were introduced to Japan through trade with Spain and Portugal. Making these confections involved the use of considerable amounts of sugar. The popularization of these sweets was a factor contributing to the increase in demand for sugar, and Dutch and Chinese ships brought it to Dejima in great quantities. Sugar imported to Dejima was taken along the Nagasaki highway to Kokura, then to other destinations such as Kyoto, Osaka, and Edo. Sugar was also taken to the northern Ezo region along with goods such as iron and salt on cargo vessels from Osaka.

Sugar was first domestically produced in Japan was toward the end of the 14th century in the Ryukyu Islands. From the 17th century on, domestic production came to flourish after the Satsuma Domain took control of sugar production. In addition to the Ryukyu Islands, the Satsuma Domain also incorporated the Amami Islands, Tanega Island, Okinoerabu Island, and Yoront Island in its sugar monopoly. Even following abolition of the domain system, Kagoshima Prefecture maintained a strict monopoly on the market comparable to that in place under the domain system. This provoked fierce movements petitioning for free trading rights in various islands. From the second half of the 18th century on, sugar production came to flourish in various regions, not just in the Satsuma Domain. These various types of domestically produced sugar were called Wasei sato (Japanese-made sugar), and because of its shape, Satsuma-produced sugar was called marudama (round beads) or tadon (charcoal balls).