Examination of the marketing claim of Sugar in the Raw and whether it is a whole, unprocessed sweetener retaining all the minerals of raw cane juice.
If a food is labeled as “raw”, what exactly does that mean?
To a consumer like me, raw means that the food is completely unadulterated. It has not in any way changed from its original natural form.
In other words, nothing has been added, removed, or heated to a temperature that would change any of the inherent nutritional characteristics.
Unfortunately, to food manufacturers, the definition of “raw” can be quite different.
In fact, raw to Big Food can translate to highly processed, industrialized food!
I’ve written before about how most raw cheese at the store is not raw at all in reality! In addition, cold-pressed raw milk and cold-pressed juice are not actually fresh either.
Sugar in the Raw Marketing Ploy
Another fake raw food at the store that is fooling a whole lot of people is “Sugar in the Raw”. It is also known as turbinado sugar or natural cane sugar.
But what about the “Good Housekeeping” seal of approval that sometimes appears on the box?
Doesn’t that mean that the Sugar in the Raw product is legitimate and to be trusted in its labeling claims?
Apparently not. Here’s what the manufacturer of Sugar in the Raw has to say about its product:
Enjoy sweet moments naturally with Sugar In The Raw®, our all-natural Turbinado sugar grown in the tropics. The hearty, golden crystals are never bleached, so they keep the rich flavor and color of their natural molasses. So go on, stir it in or sprinkle it on. Bake and cook with it too. Whatever you do, just do it naturally with Sugar In The Raw®.
It seems that just because Sugar in the Raw is unbleached makes it raw.
Perhaps that is what the USDA allows when it comes to labeling sugar products.
To me, sugar that is truly raw means much more than just unbleached. It means that nothing has been removed or added as well.
The marketing of this product is so sneaky because it leads the consumer to believe that the natural molasses is intact.
And, for Sugar in the Raw, a small amount of the molasses is indeed intact because it is a darker color than white sugar.
The truth, however, is that MOST of the molasses HAS been stripped away.
Comparison to Sucanat
Check out the picture above which shows a bowl of Sugar in the Raw next to a bowl of sucanat.
Notice the dark brown color of sucanat which is truly unprocessed cane sugar with all minerals, nutrients and molasses intact.
The lighter color of Sugar in the Raw indicates that the manufacturer has removed much of the mineral content.
In other words, the much darker sucanat visually demonstrates that Sugar in the Raw is a fake food masquerading as real.
It is an adulterated product contrary to the sneaky claims by the manufacturer.
What is the Best Cane Sugar?
Looking for the best and most nutritious form of cane sugar for your homemade cookies and cakes?
Sucanat is it! It is the best alternative to white or brown sugar substituted 1:1 in all your recipes.
It is best to bypass Sugar in the Raw or other turbinado sugar brands.
Florida Crystals is another cane sugar brand missing most of the molasses, so beware!
Most White or Brown Sugar is GMO
Another HUGE problem to watch out for is that most white or brown sugar in North America is partially or totally beet sugar. This sweetener is nearly always GMO unless certified organic.
GMO beet sugar is visually and taste-wise completely indistinguishable from white cane sugar.
Is beet sugar healthy? While it may seem so because it comes from a vegetable, the truth is that it is not!
Sugar from sugar beets is nutritionless and contaminated with gut-destroying glyphosate residue. Nearly 100% of farmers growing it use Monsanto’s Roundup Ready sugar beets.
A package of sugar must specifically state that the sweetener is cane sugar or be certified organic, else it is almost certainly a mixture that is wholly or partially GMO beet sugar.
Even brown sugar commonly contains at least some white beet sugar mixed with cane sugar molasses. The molasses from sugar beets is not fit for consumption.
To get the real thing, look for sucanat or sugarcane jaggery. Both are simply dried cane sugar juice with all minerals intact.
Ancestral cultures in India enjoyed these sweeteners for thousands of years.
What is a Safe Level to Consume?
While sucanat is your best choice when trying to find a truly natural and unprocessed substitute for processed cane sugar, be careful not to overdo.
Eating too much sugar can lower immunity, even if natural and unprocessed, in a manner similar to white sugar or partially processed sweeteners like Sugar in the Raw.
In summary, it always pays big dividends to do a little checking before buying into any labeling claims.
Sugar in the Raw is just another clever marketing scheme designed to make money off of consumers who genuinely are trying to improve their diets but don’t have quite enough information to make a completely informed decision.
Where to Find Truly Unprocessed Natural Sweeteners
Need help identifying truly natural, unprocessed whole sweeteners?
Please visit my Shopping Guide for a vetted list of vendors I buy from who offer quality sucanat, jaggery, coconut sugar, raw honey, maple syrup, and other wholesome sweeteners.
Beware that popular “healthy” sweeteners like xylitol and other sugar alcohols as well as brown rice syrup used in many organic foods and baby formula are highly processed. This is why making homemade baby formula is a better choice than commercial brands.
This article is not accurate. Turbinado sugar, i.e. Sugar in the Raw is naturally lighter than the other brown sugars.
The product isn’t called “Raw Sugar”. If it was I might agree with you. I read “In the Raw” to mean just what they describe. Interpretation is subjective I guess. I just don agree with yours…
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Well I guess its kind of false labeling and I suppose that other sugar you mentioned is better, as all its color is remained, however those sugars are sometimes hard to find. You could get sugar in the raw anywhere and even pocket them from Panera Bread or Starbucks. I think the less processing the best, so either way, it is still better then white sugar or even brown which is still processed. I think in the Raw is the name of the brand, not the sugar, the sugar is Turbani sugar and In teh Raw is the brand that makes it. They also make Stevia in the Raw, which I bet is cooked as well. Sucnate sounds better and I will keep my eyes pealed for it next time I run out of the Sugar in the Raw. I do buy Agave or honey sometimes for tea but like Sugar in the Raw for baking and varous things.
While I do feel the same as you regarding ‘sugar in the raw’, it strikes me as unfair to the company that you can come to an assessment on their product based simply on your opinions. Perhaps you should at least contact the company and ask them to clarify. Give them a chance. Again, I do believe that you are correct in your assessment, but you have many followers of your blog who ‘take your word for it’. But no REAL research has actually been done. Just a sight test. And ‘raw’ is not synonymous with ‘unrefined’. These are two entirely different topics…..
True, I think “in the Raw” is really the brand name and not a product description and is not suppose to be interpreted literally. I do like agave or honey for tea, but sometimes I like the bake or make hot chocolate homemade with the Sugar in the Raw. Maybe if people send a requet to the brand, they could make an alternate sugar like Sucnate, for those who are a little mor health conscous. I think sugar in the raw is minimally processed and broiling done is minimal and just enough to get just a little of the molassas out, I am guessing for majority they believe who prefer the lighter color. However, I would use sometime like Sucnate for my baking as it seems like it would produce similar results. I like the taste of Sugar in the Raw and that is why I purchase it. Perhaps they could change the name to Natural sugar, but I think sugar in teh Raw is just a catchy name.
For those asking about what to use in kombucha, she does say on her video to use regular white sugar because it gets used up in the brewing process.
My problem with Sucanat is that I can’t get everyone to eat things I make with it because of the potent smell. So, as we adjust, I bought some sugar in the raw (and then some organic cane sugar…which looks and tastes exactly like Sugar in the raw, though I realize it is organic and Sugar in the Raw is not). For us, it is about transitioning in the times we do need it. Luckily, my family is more than happy to use raw honey and real maple syrup for most things, but for regular baking you still need some kind of sugar or substitute for many things. I am hopeful we will gradually move to all sucanat, but it is one of those areas where we have to move slowly or I fear my hubs will say “forget this” and go buy regular table sugar and I will have to start all over!
So, keep in mind moving forward is good, even if it is in baby steps! Eventually we will all hopefully get to where Sarah is but it doesn’t happen overnight! Thanks for sharing your wealth of knowledge with us Sarah!
is organic coconut sugar okay too use?
Great Article!!! This is the type of truth that needs to be exposed to the masses. We as a culture are dying. The main reason, we do not know what we are putting in our bodies. Thanks so much for the TRUTH!!!