No matter how people try, they can’t get away with sugar completely. It’s in almost all of the food products available in the market. Unless one goes totally off grid and eats a strictly all-natural plethora diet of non-sugary edibles, no one’s escaping sugar.
Average Sugar Cost
According to a Commodities Price Forecast for January 2017 by the World Bank, sugar sells at $0.40/kg. However, off-the-shelf sugar products come in different variants.
- Granulated Sugar
The regular table sugar which is available in most homes for daily use. It’s available in different sizes with price ranging from $5.44 to $ 699.99.This type is one of the examples on how it affects how much does sugar cost.
- Coarse Sugar
Use for sprinkling over toppings of baked goods. It costs $ 229 to $ 103.30.
- Superfine Sugar
Retailing from $2.23 to $ 147.01, this is the ideal sugar for making simple syrups for beverages and other food concoctions.
- Confectioners’ Sugar
Great for baking and dessert purposes. It also works well for whipped cream since it doesn’t weigh it down. Its shelf price at the nearest grocery stores is from $2.00 to $122.88.
- Raw Sugar
Usually used for sweetening beverages even though it takes longer to dissolve. However, this is not for baking purposes, though. It costs between $1.31and $ 50.50 depending on the size and brand.
- Sanding Sugar
A sugar type use for decorating baked products which come in different colors giving it that sparkly shine. Comes in different sizes costing $2.76 to $126.2.
- Turbinado Sugar
Best substitute for granulated white sugar. It offers a richer molasses flavor and a bit of extra crunch on top of baked goods. Price for this range from $3.28 to $74.57
- Muscovado Sugar
The unrefined sugar which comes in dark and light varieties. This is great for barbecue sauce, marinades and other savory dishes which sugar would be needed. Muscovado sugar price is at $24.97 to $42.72.
The Top Factors that Move the Sugar Price
There are factors which dictate sugar prices around the world and that, of course, include the local prices. According to USDA, annual sugar production is about 160 million metric tons.
- Global stocks
The sugar market has been down since the later part of 2011. The apparent cause is the outcome of world production surplus. The law of supply and demand plays a key role here. Definitely, it is the biggest agent which affects sugar prices. The latest rate on sugar stocks according to NASDAQ is 20.33.
- Consumption outlook
Sugar prices would also be affected by the rate of consumption. If consumption is low, naturally average cost of sugar would definitely go down. But if ever there is a positive outlook on sugar consumption, a spike in sugar prices could be possible. Sugar consumption in the United States in 2016 is 10.9 million metric tons.
- Inflation
US inflation rate generally correlates with the price movement of sugar. In this case, sugar would perform fairly well.
- Weather
Weather play a great role in the production of sugar which is derived from sugar canes which are highly weather sensitive. Any weather conditions which suppress its growth could totally hamper production just like the drought in Brazil, the world’s top sugar producer.
- The ethanol effect
Ethanol, being a by-product of sugar, could be a key player on sugar prices since it is among the alternative fuels which have been in demand as of late. If oil prices go up, ethanol demand would increase too as well as sugar prices.
- Healthcare regulations
Due to recent findings that sugar consumption is associated with diabetes, obesity and tooth decay, government regulations have been in order to address this. Eventually, this could drive the prices of sugar down.
Healthier Sugar Substitutes
Sugar had been found out to result in various health concerns. But the sweet tooth won’t just go away because of that. The thing though is there are available healthier alternatives which could have an effect on how much does sugar cost.
- Agave Nectar
Great for hot or iced tea but should be used in moderation.
- Maple Syrup
A by-product of maple trees and is rich in over 50 antioxidants.
- Lemon
Sweet lemons are formidable alternative sweeteners.
- Honey
This bee product packs an antioxidant punch. Great for beverages and salads.
- Applesauce
A great substitute for sweetening oatmeal cookies.
- Erythritol
Not as sweet as sugar and won’t lead to tooth decay.
- Raisins
Rich in antioxidants and fiber, these little-dried grapes can sweeten up any baked goodies.
- Cinnamon
It offers subtle sweetness minus the calories.
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
Sweetens up beverages minus the sugar.
- Reb A
An FDA-approved sweetener which is extracted from the stevia plant. It only takes a drop or two to sweeten a bowl of oatmeal.
- Cranberries
Rich with antioxidants which sugar can’t offer.
- Processed Dates
Great for baking needs with a subtle sweetness.
- Grapefruit
A naturally sweet and sour source plus a dose of vitamin C.
- Coconut Sugar
Great source of Potassium and is sourced from coconut flowers.
- Brown Rice Syrup
Perfect for baked products, this is more nutritious than sugar and could bring down sugar price if more people prefers it.
- Rapadura
This is basically an unrefined sugarcane product so the vitamins and minerals are still there.
- Puréed Banana
Baking banana bread minus the sugar would be possible with extra ripe bananas as these are sweeter.
- Milk
Milk has natural sugar so there’s no need to add sugar.
- Barley Malt Extract
Extracted from Barley, it’s perfect for pecan or pumpkin pie.
- Sucanat
Made from organic sugarcane and is more nutritious. Sucanat stands for Sugar Cane NATural.
- Apricot Puree
This is rich with vitamin C, fiber and iron.
- Rum
When caramelized with a few slices of pineapples, this is great for pancakes or unsweetened yogurt.
- Molasses
This dark syrup would work well for gingerbread cookies as it has some extra iron and calcium, which makes the cookies healthy.
- Yacón Syrup
A sweetener made from yacon plant. It has hints of apple and a half of the calories of cane sugar.
CONCLUSION
As of 2015, government data disclose that Americans’ total sugar consumption is down to 15% from its peak in 1999. Moreover, consumption was down to 94 grams a day, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This definitely causes a decrease in the average cost of sugar. Nevertheless, that level is still higher than the 87 grams Americans consumed on average in 1970.