What is the difference between White Sugar and Brown Sugar?

Given that white and brown sugar originate from the same crops — either the sugarcane or sugar beet plant — they are quite similar.

In fact, most brown sugar is a mixture of white sugar and molasses, which is a type of sugar-derived syrup. Molasses is responsible for its darker color and slightly increases its nutritional value.

The most notable nutritional difference between the two is that brown sugar has slightly higher calcium, iron, and potassium contents.

That said, the amounts of these minerals in brown sugar are insignificant, so it’s not a good source of any vitamins or minerals.

Brown sugar also contains slightly fewer calories than white sugar, yet the difference is minimal. One teaspoon (4 grams) of brown sugar provides 15 calories, while the same amount of white sugar has 16.3 calories.

Aside from these minor differences, they are nutritionally similar. Their main differences are their taste and color.

First, the sugary juice from both crops is extracted, purified, and heated to form a brown, concentrated syrup called molasses.

Next, the crystallized sugar is centrifuged to produce sugar crystals. A centrifuge is a machine that spins extremely fast to separate sugar crystals from molasses.

White sugar is then further processed to remove any excess molasses and create smaller crystals. Subsequently, it’s run through a filtration system that’s often made with bone char, or crushed animal bones, to form white sugar.

Refined brown sugar is simply white sugar that has had molasses added back into it. Meanwhile, whole, unrefined brown sugar undergoes less processing than white sugar, allowing it to retain some of its molasses content and natural brown color.