Mineral and Metal Levels in Brown Sugar from Organic and Conventional Production Systems

Food and nutrition are basic requirements for the promotion and protection of health. In addition to ensuring the availability of calories for consumption, it is necessary to improve the access to the variety of nutrients offered to the population. The consumption of brown sugar inserts nutrients into the feeding, once it is produced only by the evaporation of the existing water in the sugarcane broth, thus maintaining all the original constituents of the plant. To evaluate the influence of organic and conventional fertilization in the nutritional quality of the brown sugars, a test was conducted with six fertilization systems, in a completely randomized block design with four repetitions. The sugars produced were analysed regarding the contents of the nutrients Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu and the toxic elements Pb and Cd. The results showed that the different fertilization systems influenced the content of the minerals present. Although small, the differences were statistically significant and the treatments provided sugars with nutritional characteristics, with an advantage for the totally organic sugar (using organic fertilizer and corrective) which, in addition to environmental issues, did not present lead contamination.