Throughout the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, sugar was the main crop produced on the numerous plantations throughout the Caribbean. Almost every island was covered with sugar plantations. The main source of labor was African slaves. These plantations produced 80-90 percent of the sugar consumed in Western Europe. In the 1800s sugar dominated Martinique, Grenada, Saint Croix, Jamaica, Barbados, Leeward Islands, Saint Domingue, Cuba and many other islands that were run by the French or British. On the British islands, sugar was the only crop grown, and on the French islands, sugar was their most important crop. A sugar is a form of carbohydrate; the most commonly used sugar is a white crystalline solid, sucrose; used to alter the flavor and properties (mouthfeel, preservation, texture) of beverages and food. ... A sugarcane plantation at Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, 2005 A plantation is a large tract of monoculture, as a tree plantation, a cotton plantation, a tea plantation or a tobacco plantation. ... The Caribbean or the West Indies is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. ... World map showing location of Africa A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second_largest continent in both area and population, after Asia. ... A monument celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, erected in Victoria Tower Gardens, Millbank, Westminster, London Wiktionary has a definition of: Slavery Slavery can mean one or more related conditions which involve control of a person against his or her will, enforced by violence or...

The sugar was best grown on land that was near the coast where the soil was naturally fertile.

By the 1960s the British used about 110 pounds of sugar a year.

The West India Interest was formed in the 1740s when the British merchants joined with the West Indian sugar planters. The British and West Indies shared profits and needs. This organization was the first sugar trading organization which had a large voice in parliament.

In 1740s Jamaica and Saint-Domingue became the world’s main sugar producers. They increased the production by using an irrigation system that French engineers built. The French engineers also built reservoirs, diversion damns, levees, aqueducts and canals. They also improved their mills and used varieties of cane and grasses.