BAGASSE

also called Megass, fibre remaining after the extraction of the sugar-bearing juice from sugarcane. The word bagasse, from the French bagage via the Spanish bagazo, originally meant rubbish, refuse, or trash. Applied first to the debris from the pressing of olives, palm nuts, and grapes, the word was subsequently used to mean residues from other processed plant materials such as sisal, sugarcane, and sugar beets. In modern use, the word is limited to the end product of the sugarcane mill. Bagasse may be used as fuel in the sugarcane mill or as a source of cellulose for manufacturing animal feeds. Paper is produced from bagasse in several Latin-American countries, in the Middle East, and in all sugar-producing countries that are deficient in forest resources. Bagasse is the essential ingredient for the production of pressed building board, acoustical tile, and other construction materials.