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Florida cane molasses is a valuable by-product of the manufacturing of raw sugar from sugarcane. Known as blackstrap, as it comes from the final centrifugals of the sugar mills before dilution. Cane molasses, industry-wide, is a multi-million dollar by-product and has become increasingly significant to the local economy.

With the growth of Florida’s sugar industry, local markets could no longer absorb the quantities of molasses that were produced. As a result the Florida Sugar & Molasses Exchange, Inc., a non-profit trade association representing a majority of the state’s producers, was formed in 1969 to provide efficient distribution of molasses.

The Exchange has encouraged the construction of molasses storage tanks at the mill sites to facilitate the year-round marketing of molasses. At the Port of Palm Beach facility, the Exchange has a tank farm where molasses can be held to export to Europe and Canada.

Most of Florida’s molasses is consumed as a livestock feed, which it is especially well suited. Florida molasses commonly has protein levels twice that of usual grade molasses due to the highly organic muck soil on which the cane is grown. About two percent of the molasses is sold to distillers in Florida for the production by fermentation of beverage alcohol, primarily rum and cane neutral spirits. It also finds its way into yeast production.