Post-harvest Sugarcane Deterioration: Leuconostoc and Its Effect

Post-harvest sugarcane deterioration is significant vicinity for cane growers as well as sugar millers. These deterioration causes low sugar recovery in mills. One of the major parts is played by the microbial infestation after harvest of cane. The most devastating microbe for it is Leuconostoc that causes large amount of post-harvest sucrose losses in cane. These microbes enter through the cut ends by the contact through soil as they are soil-borne or through contaminated cane cutters. They proliferate at a higher rate as soon as it reaches the interior of the cane, where there is ample amount of sucrose that act as a feast for its proliferation, leading to enhancement in post-harvest cane deterioration. This not only creates problems at field level but also during processing in mills as they get washed away from the cane surface and enters into the juice and thus also reduces the sucrose content by producing the enzyme dextrasucrase that converts sucrose into dextran. This dextran formation also causes troubles during milling, like, increases viscosity as well as alters the shape of sugar crystal. Although many measures have been taken for overcoming these losses caused by it; however, still complete eradication is required. This review emphasises on the effect of Leuconostoc over harvested sugarcane as well as its role in post-harvest cane deterioration.