Sugarcane as food

n most countries where sugarcane is cultivated, there are several foods and popular dishes derived from it, such as:

* Direct consumption of raw sugarcane cylinders or cubes, which are chewed to extract the juice, and the bagasse is spat out
* Freshly extracted juice (garapa, guarab, guarapa, guarapo, papelón, 'aseer asab, Ganna sharbat, mosto or caldo de cana) by hand or electrically operated small mills, with a touch of lemon and ice, makes a popular drink.
* Molasses, used as a sweetener and as a syrup accompanying other foods, such as cheese or cookies
* Rapadura, a candy made of flavored solid brown sugar in Brazil, which can be consumed in small hard blocks, or in pulverized form (flour), as an add-on to other desserts.
* Sugarcane is also used in rum production, especially in the Caribbean.
* Cane sugar syrup was the traditional sweetener in soft drinks for many years, but has been largely supplanted (in the US at least) by high-fructose corn syrup, which is less expensive, but is considered by some to not taste quite like the sugar it replaces.
* Hard rock candy is a confection that is enjoyed by people around the world.
* Jaggery - solidified molasses of sugarcane, known as Gur or Gud in South Asia. Traditionally produced by heat evaporating sugarcane juice until it is a thick sludge and then letting it cool in buckets used as molds. Modern production methods make use of partial freeze drying to give reduce caramelization and give it lighter color. It is used as sweetener in cooking traditional meal entrees as well as sweets and desserts.
Nitrogen fixation

Some sugarcane varieties are known to be capable of fixing atmospheric nitrogen in association with a bacterium, Acetobacter diazotrophicus. Unlike legumes and other nitrogen fixing plants which form root nodules in the soil in association with bacteria, Acetobacter diazotrophicus lives within the intercellular spaces of the sugarcane's stem.