Demerara sugar is a partially refined cane sugar with large, pale golden crystals and a mild toffee flavour. It retains slightly more molasses than white sugar, giving it trace minerals (potassium, iron, calcium), but its nutritional profile is essentially identical to white sugar at practical serving sizes (~400 kcal/100g). It is traditionally used to sweeten coffee and as a crunchy topping for baked goods.
Demerara's large, hard crystals make it ideal as a crunchy crumble topping or sprinkled over shortbread or muffins before baking for a golden, sparkling finish that holds its texture through cooking.
Where Sugar, Demerara Stands Out
Macronutrients per 100g
Glycemic Index & Load
Medium GI food — moderate effect on blood sugar. Pair with protein, fat, or fibre to lower the overall meal GI.
Glycemic Load (GL = GI × carbs ÷ 100) accounts for portion size. A low GL means this food has minimal real-world blood sugar impact.
Vitamins & Minerals
| Nutrient | Per 100g | % Daily Value* | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Potassium | 48.0 mg | 2% | |
| Chloride | 35.0 mg | 4% | |
| Calcium | 29.0 mg | 4% | |
| Magnesium | 9.00 mg | 2% | |
| Phosphorus | 3.00 mg | 0% | |
| Iron | 0.900 mg | 6% | |
| Copper | 0.110 mg | 11% | |
| Zinc | 0.100 mg | 1% | |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.000 µg | 0% | |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Niacin (B3) | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Thiamin (B1) | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Vitamin D | 0.000 µg | 0% | |
| Vitamin A (RE) | 0.000 µg | 0% | |
| Niacin equivalents (NE) | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Manganese | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Folate | 0.000 µg | 0% | |
| Pantothenic Acid (B5) | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Vitamin E (alpha-TE) | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Vitamin C | 0.000 mg | 0% | |
| Selenium | 0.000 µg | 0% | |
| Iodine | 0.000 µg | 0% | |
| Polyunsaturated fat (PUFA) | 0.000 g | — | |
| Trans fat | 0.000 g | — | |
| Monounsaturated fat | 0.000 g | — | |
| Sucrose | 100 g | — | |
| Glucose (dextrose) | 0.000 g | — | |
| Maltose | 0.000 g | — | |
| Fructose | 0.000 g | — | |
| Cholesterol | 0.000 mg | — | |
| Beta-carotene | 0.000 µg | — | |
| Biotin (Vitamin B7) | 0.000 µg | 0% | |
| Retinol (vitamin A) | 0.000 µg | 0% |
* % Daily Value is the proportion of an adult
EU Nutrient Reference Value (NRV) supplied by 100g of this food.
NRVs are the labelling standard — the same basis as the “%RI” figures printed on
food packaging — so these percentages are directly comparable with a shop label.
They are a single adult figure and do not vary by age or sex, which is why they
sometimes differ from UK dietary reference values: the NRV for vitamin C is 80mg
where the UK RNI is 40mg. When Nutriofia assesses your own intake in the
reports and trackers, it uses the age- and sex-specific UK values instead.
Fibre is shown without a percentage. Our fibre values use the UK
Englyst NSP method, while the published 30g daily goal is an AOAC figure — the two
are measured differently and a single percentage would mislead.
How we source and normalise our data →