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Children’s diets tend to be higher in sugars than those of adults, and parents often associate sugar with obesity. Contrary to this hypothesis, surveys of various age groups all tend to show an inverse relationship between sugars and body mass index (BMI). In the latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey of children aged 11/2 to 41/2 years, children with the lowest sugar intakes, or whose diets were lowest in biscuits and cakes, or table sugar and preserves, had the highest BMI. Over‐emphasizing the avoidance of sugars may, paradoxically, be counterproductive in preventing obesity. Due to the phenomenon known as the sugar:fat see‐saw, a diet low in sugars tends to be proportionately high in fat. It is concluded that there is little justification in limiting NME sugars to 10 per cent of energy, for the avoidance of obesity.

Since 1981, the U.S. federal government has operated a price support program to help sugar beet and sugar cane producers and processors. This complex program works through a combination of loans, import quotas, and duties. As a result, sugar prices in the United States are significantly higher than world prices. For example, in December 2001, U.S. consumers paid 22.9 cents per pound, while the world price was just 9 cents per pound. The General Accounting Office estimates that the total cost to consumers is $1.9 billion a year. Uses a simple demand-and-supply framework with real-world data to assess the economic and political consequences of the U.S. sugar program.

To illustrate welfare concepts such as consumer surplus, producer surplus, and dead-weight loss in a concrete, real-world market context.

While genetically modified (GM) crops have provided tremendous agricultural productivity gains, many consumers oppose GM products and maintain they are unsafe. We use the case of GM sugar beets and their adoption by the US producers to examine the implications of GM technology on food security. A partial equilibrium framework is used to examine the implications of GM technology on food security. This analysis provides a unique opportunity to examine the impact of GM adoption in one product (sugar beets) relative to non-GM adoption in a substitute product (sugarcane). This analysis examines the potential gains to food security through the adoption of biotechnology versus consumer fear of GM technology. Research and development (R&D) has potential implications not only through its impact on supply, but also on demand as well. This study shows that demand impacts can negate the supply-induced food security gains of R&D. Regulations such as mandatory labeling requirements can impact this outcome.

While scholars have commonly inquired into how capital structures the material world, far less attention has been paid to how the material world has structured the historical relations of the capitalist world economy. This chapter is concerned with the expansion of Caribbean sugar industry in the world economic conjuncture of the first half of the nineteenth century. It examines the relation of the material requirements of sugar production, regional geography, and productive space. The ability of planters in particular locations to respond to world economic conditions was subject to material and spatial constraints. Increased output and technological innovation were dependent on the creation of new productive spaces – including both the formation of new commodity frontiers and the reconstitution the sugar plantation – that conformed to the changing requirements of sugar manufacture. Thus, the spatial and material conditions of staple production shaped the pattern of accumulation and political economic development.

In this chapter the development of new sugarcane varieties in Florida and Louisiana is examined, along with the accompanying advancement in mechanization technology through the widespread adoption of sugarcane harvesters. An econometric analysis is carried out to determine the impact of the price of raw sugar on raw-sugar yields in Louisiana and Florida. This study found that in the case of Louisiana, the 3-year lagged US raw-sugar price had a positive and significant impact on sugar yields. The change in raw-sugar prices did not have a significant impact on sugar yields for the Florida industry. Sugar production has increased over time, in part, due to the development of new sugarcane varieties accompanied by modern sugarcane harvesters. Given the relationship between price and yield, particularly in Louisiana, policy makers and producers must be mindful of the potential impact of policy-induced research and development (R&D) on the competitiveness of their industry.

Industry 4.0 is recognised as a competitive strategy that helps implementers optimise their value chain. However, its adoption poses several challenges. This study investigates and ranks the drivers and barriers to implementing Industry 4.0 in the Thai sugar industry, the world's second-largest sugar exporter. It also evaluates the industry's readiness for Industry 4.0.

The drivers and impediments were identified based on a systematic literature review (SLR) and further investigated using a questionnaire, expert interviews, Pearson's correlation and nonparametric statistical analyses. The IMPULS model was used to assess the industry's readiness.

Most companies expect to minimise costs, develop employees and improve various elements of operational performance and data tracking capability. Thai sugar producers are still at a low readiness level to deploy Industry 4.0. High investment is the major challenge. Small businesses struggle to hire competent employees, collaborate with a highly credible technology provider and adapt to new solutions.

The findings can serve as a benchmark or guide for sugar manufacturers and companies in other sectors, where Industry 4.0 technologies are not yet widely utilised, to overcome existing roadblocks and make strategic decisions. They can also assist governments in developing policies that foster digital transformation and increase national competitiveness.

There is a scarcity of research on Industry 4.0 execution in the sugar industry. This study addresses this gap by investigating the reasons for the hesitancy of sugar producers to pursue Industry 4.0 and proposing solutions.

The purpose of this study is to enhance the understanding of the marketing placebo effect (MPE) by proposing and empirically testing a model of antecedents and consequences of MPE for reduced-sugar labeled products in the food industry.

An online survey was conducted on a sample of 409 consumers to collect data on their health consciousness, sugar-induced anxiety, self-congruity, fresh start mindset and MPE of reduced front-of-pack sugar labeling in food products. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the data and test the hypotheses.

The results highlight the sugar-induced anxiety as the most pronounced determinant for the proposed placebo effect. Health consciousness was observed to indirectly influence the MPE via mediators (sugar-induced anxiety and self-congruity). Furthermore, the supporting role of the fresh start mindset moderates the relationships between health consciousness, sugar-induced anxiety, self-congruity and the MPE.

This study is one of the few to investigate the moderating effects of having a fresh start mindset on the MPE of reduced-sugar labeled products. Moreover, the study contributes to the growing body of research on the indirect effects of health consciousness on consumer behavior, highlighting the important role of emotional (anxiety) and self-congruity factors in shaping the MPE toward reduced-sugar labeled products.

By understanding the complex interplay between the variables of the antecedents and consequences of MPE for reduced-sugar labeled products, which engenders consumer attitude and belief about sugar intake, marketers and policymakers can develop more effective campaign strategies to promote such products and, consequently, a healthy diet and lifestyle.

This study is one of the few to investigate the moderating effects of the fresh start mindset on the MPE of reduced-sugar labeled products. Moreover, the study contributes to the growing body of research on the indirect effects of health consciousness on consumer behavior, highlighting the critical role emotional (i.e. anxiety) and cognitive (i.e. self-congruity) factors play in shaping the outcome of the MPE of reduced-sugar labeling in products.

The United States (US) sugar program protects domestic sugar farmers from unrestricted imports of heavily-subsidized global sugar. Sugar-using firms (SUFs) criticize that program for causing US sugar prices to be higher than world sugar prices. This study examines the financial performance of publicly traded SUFs to determine if they are performing at an economic disadvantage in terms of accounting profitability, risk and economic profitability compared to other industries.

Firm-level financial accounting and market data from 2010 to 2019 were utilized to construct financial metrics for publicly traded SUFs, agribusinesses and general US firms. These financial metrics were analyzed to determine how SUFs compare to their agribusiness peer group and general US companies. The comprehensive financial analysis in this study covers: (1) accounting profit rates, (2) drivers of profitability, (3) economic profit rates, (4) trend analysis and (5) peer comparisons. Quantile regression analysis and Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney statistics are employed for statistical comparisons.

Regarding various profitability and risk measures, SUFs outperform their agribusiness peers and the general benchmark of all US firms in terms of accounting profit rates, risk levels and economic profit rates. Furthermore, compared to other US industries using the 17 French and Fama classifications, SUFs have the highest return on investment and economic profit rate―measured by the Economic Value Added® margin―and the second-lowest opportunity cost of capital, measured by the weighted average cost of capital.

This study finds nothing to suggest that the US sugar program hinders the financial success of SUFs, contrary to recent claims by sugar-using firms. Notably in this analysis is the evaluation of economic profit rates and a series of robustness techniques.

Bales of cotton run through the gins and textile mill instruments, stick to them and make it cumbersome for the ginning mill workers. This is so because more time and money have to be invested in cleaning these instruments. The stickiness of cotton causes health hazards to the workers, decreases the yarn quality and economic loss to the textile industry. The effect of cotton stickiness on textile ginning, various methods for cotton stickiness detection and the steps for reduction are discussed.

The different methods that are available for detecting and measuring cotton stickiness are described. The sugars that cause stickiness are either of plant origin (physiological sugars) or from the feeding insects (entomological origin). The methods for stickiness detection and reduction are discussed under physical, chemical and biological categories.

This review suggests possible ways to mitigate cotton stickiness.

One of the major issues of the textile industry is honeydew-contaminated cotton stickiness. However, there are few papers on detection methods for analyzing honeydew cotton stickiness along with the approaches to reduce stickiness. This paper summarizes different methods along with a study for detection as well as reduction of cotton stickiness.