Sugar Cane - Triangluar Slave Trade - Stevia
After the discovery of the New World, vast fields of crops such as sugar cane were grown to feed the European empires. Before long, British and French plantations in the West Indies began to dominate. British west coast ports such as Bristol and Liverpool thrived on the sugar cane industry and refineries and packaging factories were set up. But this went hand in hand with a much more sinister trade of the time - the transatlantic slave trade. Sugar was the main cash crops, which can be seen in the fact that colonial powers preferred small tropical islands over waster land gains in North America.
But what would have happened if Columbus found out about the existence of ka'a he'ê ("sweet herb"). The
POD would be that it spread from the mainland Guaraní peoples of Paraguay, Bolivia and Brazil to the island like Cuba and the Bahamans. Colmbus would propably recognize the usefulness of this crops given that he brought sugar cane already during his second voyage to the Americas. Initially to the island of Hispaniola (modern day Haiti and the Dominican Republic) Stevia has many advantages over sugar cane but the most important one would be that it can probably be cultivated without resorting to slave labour.
(This is not an advertisement thread for stevia also it might look like that after re-reading it myself

, but a serious attempt to replace a truly devious plant.)
Stevia:
Stevia is a genus of about 240 species of herbs and shrubs in the sunflower family (Asteraceae), native to subtropical and tropical regions from western North America to South America. The species Stevia rebaudiana, commonly known as sweetleaf, sweet leaf, sugarleaf, or simply stevia, is widely grown for its sweet leaves. As a sweetener and sugar substitute, stevia's taste has a slower onset and longer duration than that of sugar, although some of its extracts may have a bitter or licorice-like aftertaste at high concentrations. With its steviol glycoside extracts having up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar without having any of the negative side effects namely obesity and caries.
Advantages of Stevia:
Can grow nearly everywhere by everyone (compared to sugarcane):
Today it is grown mainly in Paraguay, Brazil, Japan and China. There are other growers scattered across the Pacific Rim. Stevia is also being cultivated in Southern Ontario and Mexico. Surprisingly, it has been successfully grown in California and the South of England as well.
Harvesting and Procession:
The harvest seems to be rather normal compared to the back breaking labor used for sugar cane, and might be done by normal farm work instead of slaves. There are several methods to process and preseve Stevia non of them to complicated.
Fresh leaves for tea or eat a few right off the plant can be used but are obviously not useful for commercial use. Plants are easily dried by hanging upside down in a dry, warm, drafty location. Lots of plants can be hung from strings or wires strung across the ceiling. Kept in a clean environment the can be used for years. Another alternative ist to strip fresh leaves from stems and spread on elevated screens in the sunshine, on a day with low relative humidity (less than 60%). If drying takes 8 hours or less, very little Stevioside will be lost. A food dehydrator on low heat (100 F to 110 F) will do an excellent job as well. Leaves are crisp, crumbly, and bright green when fully dry.
While whole leaves are great for making tea, it's easy to turn them into Green Stevia Powder with a grinder. A liquid extract can be made from the whole Stevia leaves or from the green herbal Stevia powder as well. Simply a measured portion of Stevia leaves or herbal powder is combined with pure grain alcohol (Bran or, or Scotch and the mixture is let alone for 24 hours. Now the liquid is filtered from the leaves or powder residue and dilute to taste using pure water. Note that the alcohol content can be reduced by very slowly heating (not boiling) the extract and allowing the alcohol to evaporate off. A pure water extract can be similarly prepared, but will not extract quite as much of the sweet glycosides as will the alcohol. Either liquid extract can be cooked down and concentrated into a syrup.
Not detrimental for teeth maybe even have positive effects:
Two tests conducted by Purdue University's Dental Science Research Group have concluded that Stevioside is both fluo-ride compatible and "significantly" inhibits the development of plaque, thus Stevia may actually help to prevent cavities. Realizing this advantage migrt need some alternate
Pierre Fauchard.
Insect repelling:
Stevia rebaudiana is of special interest to organic gardeners because of the plant's insect repelling tendencies. The sweetness of the plant provides natural defense mechanisms against aphids and other insects. Even crop-devouring grasshoppers avoid the plants.
Question:
Is it plausible that
Stevia/Sweet leaf/ capim doce could replace sugar cane or be at least a competitor? Once the true origins of caries are found out it should gain an impressive advantage a least. A nice side effect might be that the obesity epidemic in the industrialized world could be be averted as well.
Ideally the poet William Cowper wont never need to write "The Negro's Complaint,"
Why did all-creating Nature
Make the plant for which we toil?
Sighs must fan it, Tears must water,
Sweat of ours must dress the soil.
Think ye Masters, iron-hearted,
Lolling at your jovial Boards,
Think how many Backs have smarted
For the Sweets your Cane affords!